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EXCELLENT  WOMAN. 


2 


THE 


EXCELLENT   WOMAN 


AS   DESCRIBED    IN    THE 


BOOK  OF  PEOVEEBS. 


WITH  AN  INTRODUCTION 

BY 

WILLIAM   B.    SPRAGUE,    D.  D., 

AUTHOR  OF  "LETTERS  TO  A  DAUGHTER,"  "LETTERS  TO  YOUNG  MEN,"  "  WOMEN  Of 
THE  OLD  AND  NEW  TESTAMENT,"  ETC. 


©mbelliBfjctj  fot'tfj  numerous  Illustrattotw  rrtjrrabcTj  62  33afcrr. 


BOSTON: 
GrOULD      AND      LINCOLN 

59    WASHINGTON     STREET. 

NEW  YORK:  SHELDON  AND  COMPANY. 

CINCINNATI !  GEO.  S.  BLANCHARD. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1851, 

By   GOULD   &   LINCOLN, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts 


Printed  by  George  C.  Rand  &.  Co.,  No.  3  Cornliill. 


INTRODUCTION. 


We  hail  it  as  one  of  the  signs  of  good,  that  the  female 
sex  have,  in  these  latter  years,  been  gradually  coming  up  to 
the  position  of  dignity  and  influence  which  Providence  has 
evidently  designed  for  them.  If  we  compare  woman  as  she 
was  with  woman  as  she  is,  or  if  we  view  her  as  she  is  now 
under  Pagan  and  under  Christian  influences,  we  cannot  resist 
the  conviction  that  Christianity  is  the  wonder-working  agent 
that  has  produced  the  change  in  both  her  character  and  her 
condition.  And  we  have  a  right  to  expect  that  this  change 
will  become  yet  more  deep  and  universal.  We  anticipate 
the  time  when  Christianity  will  dispense  to  her  still  brighter 
glories ;  when  her  intellect  will  act  more  vigorously,  and  her 
heart  be  lifted  up  in  purer  and  nobler  aspirations ;  when  she 
will  not  only  better  understand,  but  more  faithfully  fulfil,  her 
allotted  mission ;  —  in  .short,  when  her  influence  shall  be  felt 
everywhere,  welcomed  everywhere,  pure  as  the  breath  of  the 
morning,  and  merciful,  yet  powerful,  as  the  ministry  of 
angels. 

But  notwithstanding  the  favorable  change  that  has  already 
taken  place,  and  the  yet  more  favorable  change  which  is 


Xn  INTRODUCTION. 

justified  to  our  hopes  and  expectations,  it  must  be  acknowl- 
edged that  we  have  little  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  the 
present  standard  of  female  excellence,  even  in  those  commu- 
nities where  the  standard  is  the  highest.  Many  examples, 
indeed,  there  are  of  female  character,  which  would  seem  to 
us  to  have  been  formed  after  a  perfect  model,  and  to  leave 
as  little  to  be  desired  as  consists  with  the  present  state  of 
human  imperfection ;  but  these  examples,  instead  of  indicat- 
ing the  ordinary  measure  of  female  attainment  and  usefulness, 
are  always  marked  as  glorious  exceptions ;  they  stand  forth 
from  the  mass  in  goodly  prominence,  showing  at  once  what 
woman  may  become,  and  what  every  woman  ought  to  aspire 
to,  as  she  would  accomplish  her  legitimate  destiny  or  attain 
to  the  highest  dignity  of  her  sex. 

There  is,  perhaps,  nothing  that  stands  more  radically  in 
the  way  of  female  progress  than  that  spirit  of  self-indulgence 
which  so  extensively  pervades  the  higher  classes  of  female 
society.  It  cannot  be  disguised  that  it  seems  to  have  become 
almost  an  essential  part  of  the  economy  of  fashionable  life, 
that  a  lady  should  have  little  or  nothing  to  do.  She  may, 
indeed,  make  her  own  toilet ;  she  may,  when  it  is  convenient, 
and  she  does  not  wish  to  spend  the  hour  in  sleep,  receive  the 
calls  of  her  friends;  she  may  walk  in  her  garden,  and 
admire  the  progress  of  vegetation,  and  be  regaled  with  the 
fragrance  of  flowers;  she  may  occasionally  take  an  airing  in 
pleasant  weather,  and  spend  here  and  there  a  few  moments 


INTRODUCTION.  XIII 

of  idle  chit-chat  with  some  of  her  acquaintances ;  she  may 
grace  the  splendid  ball-room  or  the  fashionable  party ;  she 
may  sometimes  even  sport  a  little  delicate  needle-work  with 
which  to  adorn  in  a  higher  degree  her  own  person ;  —  but 
further  than  this  she  does  not  go,  —  much  further  than  this 
she  is  forbidden  to  go,  by  the  false  code  of  fashion  to  which 
she  has  subjected  herself.  Not  that  all  these  things  which 
we  have  mentioned  are  in  themselves  worthy  of  condemna- 
tion ;  —  we  would  allow  to  a  lady  her  delicate  occupations 
and  her  innocent  amusements,  —  but  we  would  not  allow 
her  to  feel  as  if  these  were  the  greater  concerns  of  human 
life,  —  in  other  words,  as  if  she  had  nothing  to  do  which  did 
not  terminate  ultimately  in  self-indulgence.  The  truth  is, 
that  woman,  as  well  as  man,  is  made  for  activity ;  she  is 
gifted  with  the  same  intellectual  and  moral  faculties ;  and 
though  Providence  has  assigned  to  her  a  different  sphere  of 
action,  yet  he  has  in  no  wise  absolved  her  from  the  obliga- 
tion to  be  active.  Let  her  remember,  then,  if  she  settles 
down  into  a  state  of  indolent  inaction,  because  either  an 
opulent  condition  in  life  or  the  false  maxims  of  the  age 
permit  it,  that  she  offends  as  well  against  the  claims  of 
Heaven  as  against  the  dignity  of  her  own  nature. 

But  it  is  not  enough  that  woman  should  be  active ;  her 
activity  must  be  guided  by  discretion  and  animated  by  benev- 
olence;   she  must  be  contented  to   work  within  her  own 
sphere,  and  to  occupy  her  own  quiet  throne.     It  is  not  more 
1* 


XIV  INTRODUCTION. 

certain  that  she  is  endowed  with  faculties  that  qualify  her 
for  useful  exertion,  than  that  she  has  her  own  peculiar  field 
of  labor  indicated  to  her.  But,  unhappily,  she  has  not 
always  been  satisfied  to  keep  within  the  bound  which  the 
finger  of  Providence  has  manifestly  drawn  around  her.  She 
has  sometimes  forgotten  her  native  modesty,  and  thrust  her- 
self into  the  rough  and  tumultuous  scenes  of  life,  where  her 
voice  has  been  heard,  not  to  allay,  but  to  swell  the  tempest. 
She  has  talked  extravagantly  and  violently  of  her  own  rights, 
—  mistaking  a  frenzied  ambition  to  be  known  and  heard  and 
talked  about,  for  an  honest  desire  to  reform  and  purify 
society.  And  even  where  she  has  stopped  short  of  this 
extreme  point,  against  which  all  decency  and  all  common 
sense  remonstrate,  she  has  not  unfrequently  overstepped  the 
bounds  of  strict  decorum,  by  an  interference  with  matters 
not  appropriately  belonging  to  her.  Who,  for  instance, 
could  hear  a  lady,  at  a  large  dinner-party,  making  her  voice 
heard  above  the  voices  of  a  dozen  professed  politicians,  in 
debating  some  party  question,  without  feeling  that  she  had 
forgotten  her  sex  and  her  place,  and  that  no  more  fitting 
word  of  counsel  could  be  addressed  to  her  than  that  she 
should  remember  that  she  is  a  woman  ? 

What,  then,  is  woman's  peculiar  sphere  ?  In  what  field 
may  her  influence  be  most  appropriately  and  most  advan- 
tageously exerted  ? 

First  of  all,  surely,  in  her  own  dwelling — in  the  sacred  pri- 


INTRODUCTION.  XV 

vacy  of  home.  Here  she  sustains  her  most  intimate  rela- 
tions ;  and  the  duties  belonging  to  them.are  sufficient  to  put 
in  requisition  the  full  vigor  of  her  faculties.  What  important 
duties  devolve  upon  her  in  the  relation  of  a  wife !  Not 
only  is  she  bound  to  study  the  happiness  of  her  husband,  — 
to  do  what  she  can  to  alleviate  his  burdens  of  care,  and  pre- 
vent the  occasions  of  disquietude,  —  but  she  should  consider 
herself  pledged  to  the  promotion  of  his  usefulness  in  the 
highest  possible  degree ;  and  the  heart  of  an  affectionate  and 
intelligent  wife  will  quickly  find  out  many  means  of  doing 
this  which  nothing  but  experience  could  suggest.  Hence  it 
has  almost  grown  into  a  proverb,  that  an  individual  who  has 
been  eminently  successful  in  business,  or  eminently  useful  in 
society,  has  been  blessed  with  an  uncommonly  prudent  and 
excellent  wife.  In  respect  to  no  profession,  perhaps,  is  this 
remark  so  frequently  or  so  justly  made,  as  the  clerical : 
almost  every  minister's  standing  and  general  influence  are 
affected  more  or  less  by  the  character  of  his  wife ;  and  while 
many  owe  to  this  circumstance  a  greatly-increased  usefulness, 
many  others  find  in  it  a  mill-stone  about  their  necks,  —  their 
efforts  are  in  a  great  degree  paralyzed,  and  life  with  them 
is  little  more  than  a  protracted  and  unbroken  sickness  of  the 
heart.  As  a  mother,  too,  who  shall  fix  a  limit  to  woman's 
responsibility  ?  In  her  house,  and  under  her  eye,  are  grow- 
ing up  the  component  parts  of  society  in  the  next  generation ; 
and,  moreover,  each  of  them  has  an  immortal  nature,  in  which 


XVI  INTRODUCTION. 

are  bound  up  elements  of  character  that  will  prove  the  seeds 
of  an  eternal  harvest  of  glory  or  woe.  The  father  has,  indeed, 
important  duties  to  perform  towards  these  rising  immortals  : 
but  it  is  the  mother's  plastic  hand  that  chiefly  forms  their 
characters ;  it  is  her  winning  voice  especially  that  is  to  mate 
them  familiar  with  the  lessons  of  truth  and  wisdom ;  it  is 
her  gentle  hand  that  is  to  lead  them  into  the  paths  of 
virtue ;  it  is  her  firm  but  loving  look  in  which  they  are  to 
find  the  most  powerful  dissuasive  from  evil ;  —  in  short,  it 
is  through  her  agency,  far  more  than  any  other,  that  they 
are  to  be  formed  for  a  life  of  honorable  usefulness,  and  an 
interminable  career  of  virtue  and  happiness  beyond  the 
grave.  Is  there  anything  that  can  task  woman's  energies 
and  affections,  if  this  does  not?  But  yet  another  of  her 
domestic  relations  is  that  of  a  sister.  Suppose  her  to  be 
the  elder  of  a  circle  of  brothers  and  sisters  —  how  much  is 
it  in  her  power  to  do  for  the  improvement  and  the  happiness 
of  all  of  them  !  How  can  she  make  herself  felt  by  all,  not 
merely  in  inculcating  the  maxims  of  prudence  and  kindness, 
nor  yet  merely  in  acting  as  a  teacher  to  those  whose  facul- 
ties are  less  developed  than  her  own,  but  in  the  strict  pro- 
priety of  her  daily  walk,  and  by  a  thousand  insensible  and 
nameless  influences  which  become  that  tender  and  beautiful 
relation  !  It  may  safely  be  said,  then,  that  woman  is  most 
in  her  element  when  she  is  at  home.  The  objects  that  meet 
her  eye  every  hour  are  those  upon  which  her  influence  is 


INTRODUCTION.  XVII 

primarily  to  be  exerted,  and  through  which  she  is  to  reach 
out  into  the  great  world. 

But,  though  home  is  woman's  highest  and  most  peculiar 
sphere,  it  is  by  no  means  her  only  sphere ;  she  has  important 
work  to  perform  outside  of  her  own  dwelling.  It  is  a  con- 
ceded fact  that  Heaven  has  strung  in  woman's  heart  a  chord 
that  vibrates  quickly  and  deeply  to  the  notes  of  sorrow,  and 
thus  has  indicated  to  her  that  her  mission  is  to  be  in  no 
small  degree  a  mission  of  sympathy  and  charity.  Hence,  it 
is  peculiarly  fitting  that  she  should  make  herself  at  home  in 
the  dwellings  of  the  destitute  and  the  desolate;  that  she  should 
familiarize  herself  to  scenes  of  mourning,  as  a  comforter  to 
the  sorrowful;  that  she  should  look  after  the  poor  widow 
and  the  helpless  orphan,  making  provision  for  the  supply  of 
the  one  and  the  education  of  the  other ;  —  in  short,  that 
wherever  she  sees  a  cup  of  bitterness  administered  to  a 
human  being,  she  should  endeavor,  if  it  is  in  her  power,  to 
infuse  into  it  some  ingredients  of  consolation.  Who  does 
not  honor  the  name  of  Mrs.  Fry,  who  spent  many  of  her 
last  years  in  laboring  to  enlighten  and  reform  the  miserable 
tenants  of  Newgate  ?  And  who  does  not  equally  honor  our 
own  distinguished  countrywoman,  Miss  Dix,  who,  with  the 
spirit  of  a  Howard  animating  every  pulsation  of  her  heart, 
may  be  said  almost  literally  to  be  living  in  prisons,  not 
merely  for  the  physical  relief,  but  for  the  moral  and  spiritual 
benefit,  of  those  whom  neither  justice  nor  safety  would  suffer 
to  be  at  large  ? 


XVIII  INTRODUCTION. 

Nor  is  it  required  of  woman  that  she  should  limit  her 
benevolent  offices  to  scenes  of  visible  and  palpable  suffering ; 
she  may  do  much,  she  ought  to  do  much,  in  sustaining  and 
advancing  the  interests  of  true  Christianity.  She  is  by  no 
means  to  be  considered  as  infringing  the  province  of  the 
other  sex,  or  as  recreant  to  the  delicacy  of  her  own  nature, 
when  she  puts  forth  vigorous  and  combined  efforts  for  extend- 
ing the  knowledge  and  influence  of  the  Gospel.  We  have 
nothing  to  say  against,  but  much  to  say  in  favor  of,  female 
societies  in  the  different  departments  of  evangelical  charity  : 
and  it  is  to  be  devoutly  hoped  and  confidently  expected,  that 
with  the  gradual  progress  of  the  spirit  of  benevolence  in 
future  years  and  ages,  these  societies  will  form  a  far  more 
effective  and  extended  agency  than  they  now  do,  in  the  great 
work  of  renovating  the  world. 

There  is  yet  another  department  in  which  female  effort 
may  very  properly  be  encouraged,  and  in  which  many 
females  have  already  labored  in  a  manner  worthy  of  all 
praise  —  namely,  the  department  of  authorship.  There  is 
no  reason  suggested  by  delicacy,  or  common  sense,  or  public 
sentiment,  why  a  lady  who  has  fine  thoughts  on  any  subject 
of  importance,  and  has  the  power  of  expressing  them  on 
paper  in  a  fitting  manner,  should  not  give  them  to  the  world ; 
and  hence  it  has  come  to  pass,  especially  in  latter  years,  that 
many  of  the  books  which  are  fitted  to  exert  the  most  benign 
influence  on  society  are  from  female  writers.     It  would  be 


INTRODUCTION.  XIX 

easy  to  make  out  a  list  of  such  works,  not  only  from  the 
dead  hut  from  the  living,  which  have  already  acquired  the 
character  of  standard  productions,  and  the  loss  of  which 
would  make  a  chasm  in  our  literature  which  it  would  be 
hard  to  realize,  and  still  harder  to  supply.  There  are  certain 
subjects  upon  which  females  write  far  more  effectively  than 
men ;  and  that  must  be  a  dull  book,  indeed,  written  by  a 
lady,  which  the  men  will  not  read.  Let  our  gifted  ladies, 
then,  not  be  afraid  to  use  the  pen ;  but  let  them  use  it  in 
such  a  manner  that  they  shall  never  have  occasion  to  blush 
for  what  they  have  written. 

It  is  an  obvious  deduction,  from  the  preceding  train  of 
thought,  that  nothing  is  more  important  to  the  well  being  of 
society  and  the  prospects  of  the  race,  than  a  high  standard 
of  female  education ;  by  which  I  mean,  not  merely  great 
proficiency  in  what  are  commonly  called  accomplishments, 
nor  even  a  thorough  training  of  the  intellect  alone,  —  but 
such  a  formation  of  the  physical,  intellectual,  moral  and 
social  habits,  as  shall  best  subserve  the  great  end  of  a  happy 
and  useful  life.  It  scarcely  need  be  said  that  such  a  result 
is  not  to  be  looked  for,  independently  of  the  influence  of 
Christianity ;  and  hence  anything  that  falls  short  of  a  Chris- 
tian education,  however  it  may  furnish  a  passport  to  the 
favor  of  the  world,  leaves  the  greatest  interests  of  the  present, 
and  all  the  interests  of  the  future,  utterly  unprovided  for. 
A  female  may  undoubtedly  be  amiable  in  her  disposition  and 


XX  INTRODUCTION. 

attractive  in  her  manners,  and  may  be  admired  and  loved  by 
large  circles  of  friends,  while  yet  she  has  not  the  fear  of  God 
before  her  eyes,  nor  the  love  of  God  in  her  heart ;  but,  in 
order  to  fulfil  the  great  end  of  her  existence  on  earth,  and  to 
be  prepared  for  a  nobler  existence  in  heaven,  she  must  draw 
her  motives  of  action  from  the  future  and  the  invisible,  and 
never  lose  sight  of  her  relations  to  God  and  eternity. 

Whoever  makes  a  discreet  and  well-directed  effort  to 
improve  and  elevate  the  character  of  woman,  is  certainly  to 
be  regarded  as  a  benefactor  to  his  race.  On  this  ground,  I 
hesitate  not  to  say  that  the  author  of  the  following  work  has 
richly  merited  such  a  distinction.  In  a  simple  and  beautiful 
commentary  on  Solomon's  description  of  a  virtuous  woman, 
we  find  much  light  thrown  upon  the  text,  by  a  reference  to 
ancient  usages ;  a  fine  illustration  of  various  points  of  differ- 
ence between  the  Jewish  and  the  Christian  woman;  and 
many  of  the  soundest  maxims  of  wisdom  bearing  upon  the 
subject  of  female  education.  It  is  a  work  that  will  bear  to 
be  read  more  than  once ;  and  each  successive  reading  will  be 
likely  to  reveal  some  new  gem  of  thought  which  in  the 
general  mass  of  excellence  had  been  overlooked  before.  It 
is  a  book  suitable  for  the  husband  to  present  to  his  wife,  the 
mother  to  her  daughter,  and  the  brother  to  his  sister ;  and 
the  more  widely  it  is  circulated,  the  better  for  the  country 
and  the  world. 

W.  B.  S. 

Albany,  October  15,  1851. 


ub\titB   Illustrate. 


pia®^i[a!B§  xxsu  =  o®=ga, 


WHO   CAN  FIND  A  VIRTUOUS  WOMAN?    FOR  HER  PRICE  18 
FAR  ABOVE  RUBIES.  —  PAGE  25. 

THE  HEART  OF  HER  HUSBAND   DOTH   SAFELY   TRUST  IN   HER,   SO   THAT 
HE  SHALL  HAVE  NO  NEED  OF  SPOIL.  —  PAGE  36. 

SHE    WILL    DO    HIM    GOOD,    AND    NOT    EVIL,    ALL    THB 
DATS  OF  HER  LIFE.  —  PAOE  42. 

SHE  SEEKETH  WOOL  AND  FLAX,  AND  WORKETH  WILLINGLY  WITH 
HER  HANDS.  —  PAGE  50. 

SHE  IS  LIKE  THE  MERCHANTS'  SHIPS  ;  SHE  BRINGETH 
HER  FOOD  FROM  AFAR.  — PAGE  64. 

SHE   RISETH  ALSO  WHILE  IT  IS  YET  NIGHT,  AND  GIVETH  MEAT  TO   HER 

HOUSEHOLD,   AND  A   PORTION   TO   HER 

MAIDENS. PAGE  73. 

SHE    CONSIDERETH    A    FIELD,    AND    BUYETH    IT  ;    WITH    THE    FRUIT    OF   HER 
HANDS  SHE  PLANTETH  A  VINEYARD.  —  PAGE  84. 

SHE   GIRDETH   HER   LOINS  WITH   STRENGTH,   AND   STRENGTHENED! 
HER  ARMS.  —  PAGE  99. 

SHE    PERCEIVETH    THAT    HER    MERCHANDISE    IS     GOOD  ;     HER    CANDLE 
GOETH  NOT  OUT  BY  NIGHT.  —  PAGE  106. 

SHE   LAYETH   HER  HANDS  TO   THE   SPINDLE,   AND  HER    HANDS 
HOLD  THE  DISTAFF.  —  PAGE  117. 


SUBJECTS    ILLUSTRATED. 

SHE   BTBETCHETH  OUT  HER  HAND  TO  THE  POOE  ;  TEA,   8HE  BEACHETH 
FOBTH   HER  HANDS  TO   THE  NEEDT. PAGE  122. 

SHE   13  NOT  AFRAID  OF   THE   SNOW  FOR  HER  HOUSEHOLD  ;   FOR  ALL 

HER  HOUSEHOLD  ARE   CLOTHED  WITH 

SCARLET. PAGE  132. 

SUE    MAKETH   HERSELF    COVERINGS   OF  TAPESTRY  ;     HER  CLOTHING   IS  SILK 
AND   PURPLE.  —  PAGE  146. 

HER  HUSBAND   IS   KNOWN   IN    THE    GATES,   WHEN    HE    SITTETH 
AMONG  THE   ELDEES   OF   THE   LAND.  PAGE  159. 

SHE  MAKETH  FINE  LINEN,   AND   SELLETH   IT  ;    AND   DELIVEEETH   GIRDLES 
UNTO   THE   MERCHANT. PAGE  169. 

STRENGTH  AND   HONOR  ARE  HER  CLOTHING  ;   AND   SHE   SHALL 
REJOICE   IN   TIME  TO   COME. PAGE  181. 

SHE   OPENETH  HER    MOUTH  WITH  WISDOM  ;     AND    IN    HEB    TONGUE 
IS    THE    LAW   OF    KINDNESS. — PAGE  186. 

SHE   LOOKETH  WELL  TO   THE  WAYS   OF   HEB  HOUSEHOLD,   AND   EATETH   NOT 
THE    BBEAD    OF    IDLENESS. PAGE  204. 

HEB  CHILDBEN   ARISE    UP,   AND    CALL    HEB    BLESSED  :     HEB    HUSBAND 
ALSO,   AND   HE   PEAISETH  HEB.  —  PAGE  223. 

MANY  DAUGHTEBS   HAVE  DONE  VIBTUOUSLY,  BUT  THOU 
EXCELLEST   THEM  ALL. PAGE  231. 

FAVOB  IS  DECEITFUL,  AND   BEAUTY  IS  VAIN  ;    BUT  A  WOMAN   THAT   FEABETH 
THE    LOBD,    SHE    SHALL    BE    PBAISED.  —  PAGE  237. 

GIVE  HEB   OF  THE  FBUIT   OF  HEB  HANDS  ;   AND   LET  HEB  OWN 
WOBKS   PBAISE  HEB  IN  THE  GATES.  —  PAGE  247. 


hr20  cah  hsb! 


31  YlftCTGtfS  W0M1.1 


F©58    HE^    IPBISS 

18    FAT?    ASSISE    RUSHES. 


THE 


EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    I, 


WHO   CAN   FIND   A   VIRTUOUS   WOMAN  ?    FOR   HER   PRICE   IS   FAR 
ABOVE    RUBIES. 

HE  whole  of  this  beautiful  descrip- 
tion of  female  excellence  consists  of 
twenty- two  verses,  distinct  from  the 
remaining  part  of  the  chapter,  and 
^  forming,  in  themselves,  a  poem,  of 
which  each  verse  commences  with  a  let- 
ter of  the  Hebrew  alphabet.  It  is  the 
conclusion  of  that  book  which  has  been 
called  the  storehouse  of  practical  wisdom; 
and,  like  the  chapters  of  Proverbs  which 
precede  it,  it  is  admirable  for  its  just  delin- 
eations of  human  character,  its  wise  practical 
directions,  and  its  appropriate  commendations  and 
reproof.     To  the  female  sex,  in  all  ages,  it  pre- 


26  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

sents  many  striking  and  valuable  lessons.  To  the 
Hebrews,  indeed,  accustomed  to  a  highly  figurative 
mode  of  discourse,  and  a  perpetual  reference  to 
proverbs  and  wise  sayings,  the  various  portions  of 
this  book  seem  singularly  appropriate ;  and  perhaps 
many  of  those  holy  women  of  old,  of  whom  we  read 
in  the  New  Testament,  learned  by  the  study  of  this 
poem  the  duties  enjoined  by  the  God  of  their  fathers 
on  those  who  professed  to  be  his  servants.  Some 
of  the  lessons  which  it  teaches  belong  especially  to 
older  times ;  to  days  when  patient,  unremitting 
labor,  and  submission,  and  modesty,  were  the 
virtues  most  highly  commendable  in  women:  but 
all  Scripture  has  been  written  for  our  learning,  and 
its  instructions  belong  to  all  times  ;  and  the  Chris- 
tian woman  who  has  received  a  larger  Bible,  and  a 
clearer  discovery  of  divine  light,  has,  while  striving 
to  imitate  the  virtues  and  graces  here  enjoined  by 
God's  Holy  Spirit,  the  influence  of  even  a  stronger 
motive  than  any  which  Jewish  females  could  feel, 
since  Christ  has  said  to  his  followers,  "If  ye  love 
me,  keep  my  commandments." 

This  poem  has  occupied  much  of  the  attention  of 
the  learned.     The  simple  reader  of  Scripture  would 


THE    VIRTUOUS    WOMAN.  27 

infer  from  it  one  of  two  things.  Either  that  it  was 
the  description  of  some  woman  whose  character  was 
present  to  the  mind  of  the  writer  ;  or,  that  it  was  a 
picture  of  such  a  woman  as  the  inspired  writer 
would  propose  as  a  general  example.  It  is  by 
many  supposed  to  have  been  written  by  Bathsheba, 
and  intended  as  a  direction  to  Solomon,  under  the 
name  of  Lemuel,  in  his  choice  of  a  wife. 

It  would  seem,  on  reading  the  comments  on  Scrip- 
ture, both  of  old  and  modern  authors,  as  if  learning 
sometimes  served  chiefly  to  perplex  and  confound 
simple  things.  Dr.  Doddridge  has  observed,  that 
the  meaning  of  Scripture,  as  it  presents  itself  to  the 
unlearned  but  intelligent  reader,  is  generally  the 
sense  in  which  it  is  intended ;  and,  though  some 
limitation  must  be  made  to  this  remark,  especially 
in  cases  in  which  a  knowledge  of  oriental  character 
and  customs  aids  in  so  important  a  manner  the  illus- 
tration of  Scripture  truth,  yet  it  is,  in  the  main,  a 
just  conclusion.  Some  of  the  fathers  of  the  church, 
not  content  to  see  in  this  description  a  beautiful 
exhibition  of  female  character,  searched  for  a  hidden 
meaning  in  its  simple  declarations.  One  believed 
that  the  virtuous  woman  shadowed  forth  the  sens- 
2* 


28  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

itive  soul,  subject  to  the  understanding  and  the 
reason.  Another  considered  that  God's  holy  word, 
the  Scripture  of  truth,  was  thus  signified.  Some 
thought,  with  more  apparent  reason,  that  it  was 
emblematic  of  wisdom  ;  and  many,  with  Ambrose 
and  Bede,  have  regarded  the  virtuous  woman  as  a 
type  of  the  church  of  Christ.  Leaving,  however, 
these  mystical  and  spiritual  interpretations  of  the 
passage,  we  shall  consider  it  as  an  example  of  moral 
and  religious  excellence,  presented  by  God  to  every 
woman  whose  standard  of  life  and  character  is  found 
in  his  written  word. 

The  word  translated  "virtuous,"  in  the  first  verse 
of  this  poem,  has  a  reference  also  to  strength  of 
character,  and  implies  mental  and  moral  energy,  or 
courage.  So,  too,  in  the  command  of  the  apostle 
Paul,  "Add  to  your  faith  virtue,"  the  more  strict 
reading  of  the  word  would  be,  "  courage."  "  The 
word,"  says  Bishop  Patrick,  "signifies both  strength, 
or  rather  courage,  and  riches,  and  virtue.  Thus,  in 
the  description  of  fitting  persons  for  the  magistracy, 
Jethro,  in  general,  says,  they  should  be  anschee 
chajil,  which  we  translate,  able  men  ;  and  then  fol- 
lows more  particularly  wherein  their  ability  should 


THE    VIRTUOUS    WOMAN.  29 

consist.  Such  as  fear  God,  men  of  truth,  men 
hating  covetousness.  I  take  therefore  the  word  to 
include  a  great  fear  of  God,  which  is  so  powerful  as 
to  endue  one  with  courage  to  do  well,  when  piety 
is  contemned,  nay, — laughed  at  and  abused." 

There  is  throughout  this  portrait  a  firmness  and 
consistency  of  character,  which  renders  it  truly 
worthy  of  admiration,  and  which,  owing  to  the 
sensibility  with  which  women  generally  are  endued, 
is  a  virtue  demanding  great  moral  and  religious 
principle.  Women,  influenced  as  they  necessarily 
are  by  their  feelings  and  affections,  and  rendered, 
by  their  dependence  on  the  stronger  sex,  more 
liable  to  adopt  the  sentiments  of  others,  and  to  have 
the  character  moulded  by  those  to  whom  they  are 
attached,  are  peculiarly  liable  to  a  want  of  firmness 
in  conduct.  Yet  the  highest  commendation  of  God 
is  given  to  this  strength  of  character.  We  find  it 
recommended  in  the  sacred  writings,  and  especially 
enjoined  on  every  Christian.  "  Wherefore  add  to 
your  faith  virtue,"  says  St.  Paul ;  "  be  ye  steadfast, 
unmovable,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord."  Our  Christian  profession  requires,  indeed, 
to  be  held  with  firmness,  in  days  when  those  who 


30  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

are  called  Christian  women  are  often  found  conform- 
ing so  much  to  the  spirit  and  manners  of  the  world. 
"  Hold  fast,"  says  the  apostle,  "  the  confidence  and 
the  rejoicing  of  the  hope  firm  unto  the  end ;"  and 
we  are  to  "hold  fast  our  profession,"  seeing  that 
we  have  "  a  great  High  Priest,  that  is  passed  into 
the  heavens,"  and  therefore  by  him  we  may  approach 
boldly  unto  the  throne  of  grace,  to  ask  for  that  firm- 
ness and  consistency  which  we  so  much  need.  And 
great  encouragement,  too,  is  given  to  firmness  ;  for 
when  we  are  desired  to  "  hold  fast  the  profession  of 
our  faith,  without  wavering,"  we  are  directed  to 
the  cheering  consideration  of  the  unchanging  prom- 
ises of  Christ,  "  For  he  is  faithful  that  promised." 

There  was  among  the  Hebrews  a  strong  and  deep 
earnestness  of  character,  contrasting  remarkably 
with  the  listlessness  and  supineness  of  many  ori- 
ental people  ;  and  the  Scripture  exhibits  numerous 
instances  of  moral  strength  among  the  Jewish 
women.  There  was  Miriam,  the  sister  of  Moses 
and  Aaron,  who,  in  those  days  when  Israel's  God 
had  led  them  through  the  dry  land,  and  overwhelmed 
their  enemies  in  the  deep  waters,  left  the  privacy 
of  domestic  life,  and  joined  with  all  the  Hebrew 


THE    VIRTUOUS    WOMAN.  31 

women  in  publicly  praising  their  Great  Deliverer ; 
and,  in  a  noble  fervor  of  inspired  feeling,  sang  that 
song,  which  no  poet  of  later  ages  has  ever  equalled 
in  sublimity : 

"  Sing  ye  to  the  Lord,  for  he  hath  triumphed  gloriously ; 
The  horse  and  his  rider  hath  he  thrown  into  the  sea." 

There  was  Deborah,  who  sat  beneath  the  palm- 
tree,  judging  Israel,  and  even  went  up  fearlessly  to 
the  battles  of  the  Lord.  There  was  the  noble-minded 
daughter  of  the  rash  Jephthah,  whose  moral  courage 
failed  not  in  the  hour  of  danger,  but  who,  even  in 
the  prospect  of  personal  sacrifices,  could  rejoice  that 
her  father  had  conquered  the  enemies  of  her  people ; 
and,  with  firm  integrity,  could  urge  him  to  keep  a 
promise  very  injurious  to  herself.  "  My  father,  if 
thou  hast  opened  thy  mouth  unto  the  Lord,  do  to 
me  according  to  that  which  hath  proceeded  out  of 
thy  mouth ;  forasmuch  as  the  Lord  hath  taken  ven- 
geance for  thee  of  thine  enemies,  even  of  the  chil- 
dren of  Ammon." 

In  the  less  troublous  times  of  Israel,  no  doubt, 
Jewish  women  could  be  found  who,  like  the  female 
of  the  text,  were  quietly  performing  the  duties  of 


32  THE     EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

life,  with  strength  and  steadiness  of  character.  But 
the  records  of  domestic  life  are  written  chiefly  in 
the  hearts  of  the  home  circle  ;  its  events,  important 
as  they  are,  not  only  to  that  circle,  but  also,  in  their 
eventual  influence,  on  the  whole  character  of  a 
nation,  are  yet  too  uniform  and  simple  for  the  page 
of  either  inspired  or  profane  history ;  and  the  detail 
given  of  the  Excellent  Woman  in  this  book  is  the 
fullest  picture  which  is  to  be  found  in  the  sacred 
writings  of  the  excellency  and  employments  of  a 
holy  woman  in  her  home.  Happy  is  that  woman 
who  well  performs  the  duties  of  home,  to  whom 
home  is  the  sphere  which  concentrates  her  ambition, 
and  has  the  largest  share  of  her  love ;  and  who 
governs  her  household  actively  and  diligently,  and 
in  the  fear  of  the  Lord. 

But,  although  no  other  part  of  Scripture  gives  so 
connected  a  detail  of  a  pious  woman's  works  and 
duties,  yet  all  the  various  directions  to  the  female 
sex,  with  which  the  writings  of  the  apostles  abound, 
accord  with  its  principles.  "  Wives,  submit  your- 
selves unto  your  own  husbands,  as  it  is  fit  in  the 
Lord;"  even  so  must  the  wives  "be  grave,  not 
slanderers,  sober,  faithful  in  all  things." 


THE    VIRTUOUS    WOMAN.  33 

Again :  she  is  to  be  well  reported  of  for  good 
works  ;  if  she  have  brought  up  children,  if  she  have 
lodged  strangers,  if  she  have  washed  the  saints'  feet, 
if  she  have  relieved  the  afflicted,  if  she  have  dili- 
gently followed  every  good  work.  "  In  behavior," 
good  wives  were  to  be  "  as  becometh  holiness  :  not 
false  accusers,  not  given  to  much  wine,  teachers  of 
good  things  ;  — to  be  sober,  to  love  their  husbands, 
to  love  their  children.  To  be  discreet,  chaste, 
keepers  at  home." 

It  was  from  such  holy  mothers  that  the  saints  of 
the  New  Testament  were  descended.  Of  such  a 
mother  and  such  a  grandmother,  young  Timothy 
learned  the  Holy  Scriptures.  In  homes  like  this 
were  reared  Martha  and  Mary,  those  sisters  of 
Bethany,  that  family  whom  Jesus  loved,  and  one 
of  whom  he  gently  reproved,  because  her  energy 
of  character  led  her  to  a  restless  anxiety  of  serving 
at  a  moment  when  she  should  have  sat  and  listened 
to  the  words  of  her  Lord.  In  households  like  these 
dwelt  the  mother  of  our  Saviour,  and  Elizabeth,  the 
blessed  of  the  Lord, — names  ever  dear  to  us  all. 
From  such  sprung  Priscilla,  who  received  the  young 
Apollos  into  her  home,  and  expounded  unto  him  the 


34  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

way  of  Goi  more  perfectly ;  and  who,  with  her 
husband,  is  said  by  the  apostle  to  have  been  ready, 
for  his  life,  to  have  laid  down  their  own  necks.  Of 
such  were  Phebe,  the  servant  of  the  church  at  Cen- 
chrea ;  and  Mary,  who  bestowed  much  labor  on  the 
ministers  of  Christ ;  and  many  others,  who,  when 
faithful  steadfastness  and  pious  strength  of  resolu- 
tion led  to  death,  yet  shrunk  not  even  from  suffering, 
but  joined  the  noble  army  of  martyrs,  and  are  among 
those  who  "  came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and  have 
washed  their  robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the 
blood  of  the  Lamb." 

Even  in  that  deeply  solemn  hour  when  the  blessed 
Saviour  yielded  his  life  on  the  cross,  to  atone  for 
sinful  man,  —  at  an  hour  when  the  fear  of  death  had 
power  to  triumph  over  the  faith  of  many, — when 
his  disciples  forsook  him  and  fled, — yet  holy  women 
shrunk  not  from  following  him  to  the  cross. 

When  foes  the  hand  of  menace  shook, 
And  friends  betrayed,  denied,  forsook, 
Then  woman,  meekly  constant  still, 
Followed  to  Calvary's  fatal  hill : 

Yes,  followed  where  the  boldest  failed, 
Unmoved  by  threat  or  sneer  : 


THE    VIRTUOUS    WOMAN.  35 

For  faithful  woman's  love  prevailed 
O'er  helpless  woman's  fear. 

To  a  woman,  the  pious  virgin  Mary,  the  mother 
of  the  Saviour,  his  dying  eyes  were  directed,  and 
his  dying  bequest  made,  that  the  beloved  disciple 
would  take  her  to  his  own  home.  0  that  woman's 
steadfastness  of  character  may  shrink  not,  either  in 
the  day  of  persecution  or  in  the  daily  acts  of  house- 
hold duty,  since  strength  and  wisdom  are  given  now 
by  him  who  gave  it  to  holy  women  of  old ;  that 
now,  as  then,  they  may  follow  the  Lord  fully !  The 
example  here  given  should  lead  every  female  to  seek 
from  the  Holy  Spirit  the  grace  to  abound  in  holy 
courage  and  devotedness  to  the  Lord. 

Woman !  blest  partner  of  our  joys  and  woes ! 

Even  in  the  darkest  hour  of  earthly  ill, 
Untarnished  yet  thy  fond  affection  glows, 

Throbs  with  each  pulse,  and  beats  with  every  thrill ! 
When  sorrow  rends  the  heart,  when  feverish  pain 

Wrings  the  hot  drops  of  anguish  from  the  brow,  — 
To  soothe  the  soul,  to  cool  the  burning  brain, 

0  J  who  so  welcome  and  so  prompt  as  thou  ? 

3 


36 


THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION   II. 

THE    HEART    OF    HER    HUSBAND    DOTH    SAFELY    TRUST    IN    HER,     SO 
THAT   HE   SHALL   HAVE   NO   NEED   OF    SPOIL. 

ONFIDENCE  of  such  a  kind  implies 
not  only  a  conviction  of  simplicity 
and  guilelessness  of  character  in 
the  wife,  but  it  also  assures  us  of 
Jier  discretion.  No  man  could  safely 
trust  in  one  whose  conduct  was  not 
•unspotted  in  all  her  intercourse  with 
society.  The  heart  of  her  husband  had 
(no  care,  lest,  by  any  unguarded  act,  any 
imprudence  on  her  part,  she  should  bring  a 
reproach  upon  his  name,  or  a  sorrow  into  his 
bosom.  Such  a  woman  must  have  shunned  even 
the  appearance  of  evil.  She  must  have  acted  on 
the  principle  of  the  Hebrew  proverb,  "A  good  name 
is  better  than  precious  ointment,  and  loving  favor  to 
be  chosen  rather  than  choice  gold;"  and,  by  the 
uniform  consistency  of  a  virtuous  life,  have  gained 
the  entire  confidence  of  him  who  best  knew  her 
character. 


M©  K1ES®  ©J  SP'SJiU 


THE    TRUSTWORTHY    WOMAN.  39 

But  while  the  text  implies  this,  yet  it  mainly 
refers  to  the  assurance  entertained  by  her  husband 
of  her  care  and  skill  in  the  management  of  her 
household.  Archbishop  Cranmer  renders  this  pas- 
sage, "  So  that  he  shall  fall  into  no  poverty,"  and 
Boothroyd  translates  it,  "And  of  his  property  he 
will  not  be  deprived."  The  Septuagint  version 
understands  the  word  spoil  as  referring  to  the 
woman,  and  not  to  her  husband ;  "  Such  an  one 
as  she  shall  not  want  good  spoils."  But  in  any 
case  it  signifies  that  provident  care  and  management, 
that  looking  after  the  concerns  of  her  family,  for 
which  we  find  her  so  often  commended  throughout 
the  poem. 

The  need  of  spoil  must  be  explained  by  a  refer- 
ence to  the  usages  of  the  Hebrews  at  this  period 
of  society.  The  Israelites  had  often  obtained  spoils 
in  their  encounters  with  neighboring  nations.  The 
reign  of  David  had  been  occupied  by  continual  war- 
fare. The  pastoral  community  at  this  time  were 
not  a  tribe  of  idle  shepherds,  but  those  who  had 
been  men  of  war  from  their  youth ;  and  their  fre- 
quent expeditions  were  regarded  as  acts  of  retalia- 
tion for  similar  offences  from  the  herdsmen  of 
neighboring  tribes.    Saul  and  David  had  been  great 


40  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

warriors ;  and  under  the  latter  king,  the  Israelites 
had  been  so  trained  to  military  discipline  that  they 
appear  to  have  been  always  victorious  in  the  field, 
and  are  frequently  represented  as  sharing  that  spoil 
which  in  the  more  peaceful  days  of  Solomon  was 
less  generally  enjoyed.  The  first  public  act  of 
Saul  had  been  a  battle  against  Nahash  the  Ammon- 
ite ;  and  in  the  description  of  the  spoil  taken,  when 
Saul  and  Jonathan,  and  all  the  Hebrews,  encoun- 
tered the  Philistines,  we  see  the  nature  of  the  wealth 
gained  by  the  Israelites.  In  the  narrative  given  in 
1  Samuel  xv.,  we  find  that  the  people  flew  upon  the 
spoil,  and  took  sheep  and  oxen  and  calves.  And 
when,  in  the  following  chapter,  we  read  that  Saul 
fought  against  the  Amalekites,  and  sinned  against 
Jehovah  by  appropriating,  as  spoil,  those  things 
which  he  had  commanded  him  to  destroy,  we  find 
enumerated  the  sheep  and  oxen  and  lambs,  which 
formed  the  wealth  of  a  pastoral  people. 

But  if  Saul,  as  had  been  sung  by  the  Hebrew 
maidens,  had  slain  his  thousands,  David  had  slain 
his  tens  of  thousands,  and  the  records  of  his  life 
display  how  much  wealth  had  been  gained  by  the 
Israelites  from  their  enemies.  At  the  time  when 
David,  driven  from  his  home  by  the  jealousy  of 


THE    TRUSTWORTHY    WOMAN.  41 

Saul,  wandered  with  his  men  to  the  wilderness  of 
Paran,  they  probably  supported  themselves  by  spoil 
gathered  from  the  tribes  who  came  down  upon  the 
shepherds  of  the  land.  The  narrative  of  Nabal's 
churlishness  refers  to  David's  protection  of  the 
herdsmen  from  incursions  of  this  nature  ;  for  when 
their  unthankful  master  refused  his  help  to  the 
wanderer,  the  young  men  told  Abigail,  and  said  of 
David's  host,  "  They  were  a  wall  unto  us  both  by 
night  and  day,  all  the  while  we  were  with  them 
keeping  sheep."  And  now,  when  peace  was  in 
Israel  generally,  yet  in  adjacent  countries  the  same 
practices  were  continued,  and  the  man  who  sought 
to  be  rich  often  shared  the  spoil  taken  from  others. 

But  in  the  case  of  this  Jewish  family  there  was 
no  need  of  such  spoil.  Industry  supplied  the  house- 
hold wants,  and  care  kept  that  from  waste  which 
industry  had  gathered,  and  the  husband  had  no 
occasion  to  go  out  to  warfare.  Under  the  shadow 
of  his  own  vine  and  his  own  fig-tree  he  could  enjoy 
the  blessings  of  a  peaceful  life  ;  and  in  his  earthly 
home  could  find  that  love  and  quietness  which  might 
prove  the  best  foretaste  that  earth  can  give  of  the 
heavenly  home  to  which  he  was  tending. 
3* 


42  THE    EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 


SECTION   III. 

SHE   WILL   DO   HIM   GOOD,    AND   NOT   EVIL,   ALL   THE   DAYS  OJ 
HER   LIFE. 

T  is  much  in  the  power  of  all  who 
dwell  in  the  same  household  to  ben- 
efit each  other.  Hourly  opportuni- 
ties occur  of  showing  kindness,  of 
'lending  aid,  of  practising  forbearance, 
and  of  constantly  doing  mutual  good. 
But  this  is  most  especially  the  case  with 
husbands  and  wives.  If  we  except  the 
strongest  of  all  earthly  influences,  —  that  of 
the  mother  on  her  child,  —  there  is  none 
which  can  equal  that  of  the  conjugal  relation. 
Time  and  eternity  are  connected  with  it.  Happi- 
ness or  misery  is  dependent  on  the  way  in  w^hich  it 
is  exercised  ;  so  important  is  it,  that  the  wise  and 
inspired  man  said,  "  A  good  wife  is  from  the  Lord." 
"  See  that  ye  love  one  another  with  a  pure  heart 
fervently,"  said  the  apostle  Peter,  when  enjoining 
on  the  early  converts  the  duties  of  the  Christian 
life ;  and  if  this  is  commanded  to  all,  how  much 


THE    BENEFICENT    WOMAN.  45 

more  is  it  to  be  cultivated  by  those  who  are  attached 
by  the  strongest  domestic  tie  !  And  as  no  marriage 
should  be  contracted  without  mutual  love,  so  the 
principle  of  love  should  guide  a  woman  in  all  her 
married  life,  and  lead  her  always  to  do  good  to  her 
husband. 

A  wife  can  do  much  good  to  her  husband  by 
promoting  his  domestic  comfort.  This  is,  indeed, 
placed  almost  wholly  in  her  hands ;  it  rests  with 
her  to  see  that  the  fireside  is  the  place  of  attraction, 
that  home  is  the  brightest  spot  on  earth.  And  love 
will  teach  ingenuity  to  the  faithful  wife,  and  show 
to  her  a  thousand  ways  by  which  she  may  endeai 
the  home  circle.  If  she  wish  to  enjoy  her  husband's 
society,  she  must  be  a  keeper  at  home ;  and  so 
arrange  her  family  as  that  he,  when  he  returns 
from  the  care  and  noise  and  contention  of  the  world, 
shall  find  a  retreat  in  which  sweet  converse  shall 
beguile  him  of  his  cares,  and  peace,  and  love,  and 
order,  and  gentle  welcome,  and  soothing  sympathy, 
shall  form  a  striking  contrast  to  the  scenes  he  has 
just  quitted. 

Another  way  in  which  we  may  feel  certain  that 
the  matron  of  the  text  did  good  to  her  husband, 


46  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

was  by  sharing  his  cares.  On  many,  in  modern 
times,  the  charge  is  not  incumbent  of  laboring  with 
the  hands  to  provide  food  and  raiment  for  the  family, 
as  did  this  eminent  example  of  female  virtue.  The 
different  constitution  of  modern  society  has  placed 
upon  men  the  duty  of  maintaining  a  family,  and 
left  to  woman  the  sweeter  privilege  of  ordering  the 
charities  of  home.  Yet,  even  now,  a  wife  may  do 
much  to  lessen  the  cares  of  a  husband.  She  may 
not  fully  understand  the  nature  of  his  employments, 
she  cannot  exactly  enter  into  the  details  of  his 
business  ;  but  she  can  give  the  attentive  ear  ;  she 
can  endeavor  to  comprehend  his  difficulties ;  she 
can  forbear  the  mention  of  any  irritating  domestic 
circumstances ;  she  can  soften  down  annoyances. 
Sometimes  she  can  cheer  him  by  reminding  him  of 
some  consoling  promise  of  God's  word.  She  can 
show  him  the  command  of  holy  writ,  to  cast  his  care 
upon  God.  She  can  tell  him  that  "  they  that  seek 
the  Lord  shall  not  want  any  good  thing,"  and  per- 
haps lead  him  to  say,  with  David,  "What  time  I 
am  afraid,  I  will  trust  in  thee."  And  when  all 
these  fail,  and  her  anxious  eye  sees  the  cloud  still 
darken  over  his  brow,  then  she  can  pray,  with  a 


THE    BENEFICENT    WOMAN.  47 

firm,  unwavering  faith,  that  God  would  indeed 
"  lift  up  the  light  of  his  countenance  upon  him,  and 
give  him  peace." 

Nor  is  it  less  her  duty  to  share  in  his  joys.  If 
her  husband  have  succeeded  in  some  pursuit,  with 
what  heartiness  should  the  wife  enter  into  his  pleas- 
ure !  Never  should  the  wandering  eye  betray  that 
she  listens  with  indifference  to  the  details  which 
interest  him.  She  should  value  his  pursuits,  if  for 
no  other  reason  than  because  they  are  his  ;  and  by 
an  ever  ready  sympathy  should  "  do  him  good,  and 
not  evil,"  all  the  days  of  her  life.  Never  should 
the  depressing  fear  or  the  ardent  hope  be  thrown 
coldly  back  again  on  him  who  utters  it.  One  such 
repulsion  will  do  more  to  alienate  the  love  of  a 
sensitive  mind  than  many  little  acts  of  neglect  or 
annoyance. 

A  wife  will  also  do  her  husband  good  by  encour- 
aging him  to  holiness  and  virtue,  and  warning  him 
against  sin.  In  the  intimacy  of  domestic  life,  the 
first  tendency  to  evil  is  sometimes  evident  to  the 
wife,  and  it  is  her  duty  to  rebuke  with  all  gentle- 
ness, and  to  plead  with  all  earnestness,  against 
conduct  which  may  be  displeasing  to  God  and  man. 


48  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

Abigail's  reproof  and  counsel  of  David  is  a  beauti- 
ful instance  of  womanly  tact  and  delicacy  thus 
employed.  When  Nabal,  in  return  for  David's 
kindness  and  protection,  had  contemptuously  refused 
refreshments  to  the  warrior  shepherd,  how  does 
Abigail  propitiate  David's  wrath,  and  dissuade  him 
from  revenge  !  "And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  when 
the  Lord  shall  have  done  to  my  lord  according  to  all 
the  good  that  he  hath  spoken  concerning  thee,  and 
shall  have  appointed  thee  ruler  over  Israel ;  that 
this  shall  be  no  grief  unto  thee,  nor  offence  of  heart 
unto  my  lord,  either  that  thou  hast  shed  blood 
causeless,  or  tfc&t  my  lord  hath  avenged  himself." 
And,  in  like  manner,  how  often  may  the  wife 
expostulate  with  her  husband,  and  thus  keep  him 
from  evil  that  it  may  not  grieve  him  ;  and  in  after 
days  he  may  look  back  with  gratitude  and  affection 
for  the  warning  voice  which  checked  his  onward 
course,  and  bade  him  pause  and  consider. 

The  wife  of  the  text  did  her  husband  no  evil. 
She  neither  wasted  his  wealth  nor  neglected  his 
comfort,  nor  was  careless  of  his  reputation,  nor 
provoked  him  to  anger.  She  loved  him  with  a 
steady  love,  all  the  days  of  her  life  ;  in  joy  and  in 


THE    BENEFICENT    WOMAN.  49 

sorrow,  in  sickness  and  in  health.  Years  passed 
on,  and  saw  it  fixed,  while  all  around  was  changing. 
Et  was  not  like  the  vapory  cloud  upon  the  blue  sky, 
driven  about  by  every  wind  of  heaven,  and  skim- 
ming lightly  over  the  surface  ;  but  as  the  rock  in 
the  midst  of  the  waters,  against  which  the  waves 
might  dash  and  bring  no  change,  and  on  which  all 
the  alternations  of  sun  and  wind  fell  harmlessly, 
and  which  stood  unshaken  by  all  things.  Seldom 
is  love  like  this, — love  which  can  bear  the  test  of 
time  and  the  shock  of  adversity, — love  which  can 
flourish  even  amid  infirmities ;  seldom  is  it  found 
but  in  the  home  of  the  loved  and  loving. 

They  who  love  us  till  we  die, 

Who  in  sorrow  have  been  tried, 
Who  will  watch  our  closing  eye, 

When  all  grows  cold  beside  : 
Where  shall  friends  like  these  be  found, 

Search  the  earth  and  ocean  wide ; 
On  what  hallowed  spot  of  ground, 

Save  our  own  fireside  ? 


50 


THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    IV. 


SHE    SEEKETH    WOOL    AND    FLAX,    AND   WORKETH    WILLINGLY   WITH 
HER   HANDS. 

BVIOUSLY,  the  whole  description 
given  by  the  inspired  writer  of  the 
employments  of  the  Jewish  matron 
belongs  either  to  primitive  ages,  or 
to  those  pastoral  regions  of  modern 
times,  in  which  commerce  with  other 
nations  has  made  little  progress,  and  for- 
eign manufactures  are  almost  unknown. 
Recently,  the  Hebrew  people  had  been 
engaged  continually  in  battle,  and  now  the 
*r  men  of  Israel  were  chiefly  occupied  with 
agriculture  and  pastoral  employments.  Trade  with 
other  lands  was  confined  to  occasional  barter,  and 
the  various  stuffs  needful  for  the  clothing  of  the 
household,  though  sometimes  wrought  by  the  pro- 
fessed weaver,  were  chiefly  fabricated  by  the  hands 
of  the  mistresses  or  maidens  of  the  Jewish  homes. 
Solomon,  indeed,  had  fetched  spices  from  Arabia, 
and  fine  linen  from  Egypt ;  and,  in  his  love  for 


s     SSSXSTM  WOOL  AW®  FLA3L  AW®  WOJSXSTH  Vx 

J)  WULaWSLY  W7J3  HSJS  HAM©?-.      (i 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  53 

natural  history,  had  assembled  in  his  capital  the 
birds  and  animals  of  distant  countries ;  yet  his 
traffic  seems  to  have  been  almost  confined  to  his 
own  requirements,  and  not  to  have  extended  itself 
to  his  subjects.  In  such  a  state  of  society,  the 
domestic  industry  of  the  female  part  of  the  popula- 
tion becomes  so  necessary,  that  it  is  always  encour- 
aged and  valued.  The  ancient  Romans,  under 
circumstances  somewhat  similar,  expected  from 
their  wives  a  great  degree  of  attention  to  household 
employments,  and  this  was  enjoined  by  their  mar- 
riage rites.  So  also  among  the  Greeks,  in  the 
early  ages  of  the  world,  the  mistress  worked  with 
her  servants,  and  the  high-born  lady,  as  well  as  the 
daughter  of  the  peasant,  performed  those  humble 
and  more  active  duties  generally  left,  in  our  time 
and  country,  to  the  poor.  Homer  intimates  that 
the  daughters  of  princes  washed,  in  the  fountain, 
the  clothing  of  the  family ;  while  from  Scripture 
we  learn  that  Rebecca,  the  heiress  of  a  pastoral 
prince,  gave  drink  to  the  servant  of  Abraham,  and 
afterwards  drew  water  for  himself  and  his  cattle. 
Rachel,  too,  the  beautiful  daughter  of  one  who 
possessed  sheep  and  herds  in  abundance,  yet  kept 
4 


54  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

her  father's  flocks  on  the  plains  of  Syria,  exposed 
to  the  scorching  heat  of  day,  if  not  to  the  heavy 
dews  of  night.  Even  now,  in  the  pastoral  regions 
of  Asia,  it  is  the  glory  of  a  woman  that  her  own 
hand  has  wrought  the  clothing  of  her  husband,  son, 
or  brother,  and  has  decked  the  walls  of  their  dwell- 
ings ;  and  a  helpless,  useless  woman  would  be 
despised  by  the  other  females  of  her  tribe. 

So  it  was  of  old, 
That  woman's  hand,  amid  the  elements 
Of  patient  industry  and  household  good, 
Keproachless  wrought,  twining  the  slender  thread 
From  the  light  distaff;  or  in  skilful  loom 
Weaving  rich  tissues,  or  with  glowing  tints 
Of  rich  embroidery,  pleased  to  decorate 
The  mantle  of  her  lord.     And  it  was  well ; 
For  in  such  sheltered  and  congenial  sphere 
Content  with  duty  dwells. 

And  this  diligent  industry,  so  applicable  to  the 
wants  of  the  people,  had  its  praise  of  God,  while 
the  luxurious  and  delicate  habits  of  the  daughters 
of  Zion,  in  later  ages,  are  marked  with  his  displeas- 
ure. It  is  with  stern  reprobation  that  the  prophet 
Isaiah  speaks  of  the  rings,  and  chains,  and  mufflers, 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  55 

and  fine  linen,  of  the  Jewish  ladies,  whose  haughty 
demeanor  called  for  the  solemn  threatenings  of  God ; 
and  all  whose  ornaments  were  to  be  forgotten  soon, 
when  Zion,  the  faithless  Zion,  should  be  full  of 
mourning  and  lamentation,  and,  "being  desolate, 
should  sit  upon  the  ground." 

Owing  to  the  almost  unchanging  customs  of 
Eastern  nations,  the  people  of  modern  Palestine  are 
probably  clothed  nearly  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
ancient  Hebrews,  and  a  variety  of  woollen  and  linen 
garments  are  still  worn  in  that  land.  When  Hannah 
made  the  young  Samuel  a  little  coat,  and  brought  it 
to  him,  year  by  year,  as  she  came  up  with  her  hus- 
band to  the  yearly  sacrifice,  she  performed  the  part 
of  a  mother  in  Israel ;  and,  in  all  likelihood,  carried 
to  her  beloved  child  a  garment  of  pure  white  linen, 
or  wool,  for  such  were  much  worn  by  the  ancient 
Jews,  to  whom  frequent  purifications  and  washings 
were  commanded  by  Israel's  God.  It  might  have 
been,  however,  a  coat,  like  that  of  Joseph,  of  many 
colors,  for  brilliant  dyes  and  skilful  embroidery 
were  often  used  by  the  Israelites  to  ornament  their 
dresses.  One  prohibition  on  the  subject  of  woollen 
clothing  had  been  given  to  the  Jews.     God  had 


56  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

forbidden  them  to  wear  a  garment  made  of  woollen 
and  linen,  for  in  such  a  dress  the  heathen  priests 
worshipped  their  false  gods,  in  the  superstitious 
hope  of  a  blessing  on  their  flax  and  their  sheep ; 
and  the  one  true  God,  the  great  Jehovah,  would 
that  his  chosen  race  should  come  out  from  idolaters, 
and  be  a  separate  people. 

The  excellent  woman  whom  we  are  considering 
was  evidently  a  person  of  wealth  and  distinction , 
she  was  the  wife  of  one  who  sat  among  the  elders 
of  the  land,  and  we  may  reasonably  suppose  that 
she  gathered  the  flax  from  her  own  fields,  as  well 
as  that  the  wool  was  the  produce  of  her  own  flocks. 
Flax  was  one  of  the  plants  earliest  cultivated  by 
mankind  in  masses.  Its  bright  green  stalks  with- 
ered before  the  plague  of  hail  which  came  upon 
Egypt,  when  the  flax  and  barley  were  smitten ; 
and  its  bright  blue  flower  seems  to  have  been  very 
abundant  in 

That  fertile  land,  where  mighty  Moses  stretched 
His  rod  miraculous. 

A  little  later  in  the  history  of  the  world  we  find 
a  woman  preparing  it  for  use ;  for  Kahab  had  laid 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  57 

the  stalks  of  flax  on  the  roof  of  her  house,  that  the 
scorching  sun  and  the  damp  Syrian  dews  might 
macerate  its  fibres,  when  the  spies  entreated  her 
compassion,  and  were  hidden  by  her  among  the 
half-dried  plants.  "  By  comparing  the  several 
passages  in  Scripture,"  says  Kitto,  "  in  which  flax 
is  mentioned,  we  shall  find  the  amount  to  be,  that 
flax  was  cultivated  to  a  considerable  extent  in  Pal- 
estine ;  that  garments  of  it  were  worn  not  only  by 
the  priests  and  Levites,  but  very  largely  by  the 
people.  The  coarse  linen  cloths  were  manufactured 
at  home  by  the  women,  but  the  finer  were  imported 
from  Egypt ;  the  ancient  celebrity  of  which  coun- 
try, for  its  linen  fabrics,  is  abundantly  confirmed  in 
Scripture.  We  cannot  find  that  flax  is  now  much 
cultivated  in  Palestine,  although  considerable  atten- 
tion is  paid  to  the  culture  of  cotton.  It  may  be 
that  the  soil  and  climate  are  less  suited  than  that 
of  Egypt  to  its  production." 

There  is  a  cheerfulness  and  a  heartiness  in  the 
character  which  the  inspired  writer  gives  of  the 
Jewish  woman.  She  "  worketh  willingly,"  or,  as 
some  translate  it,  "  with  the  delight  of  her  hands  ;" 
and  it  is  this  willingness  which  lends  a  grace  tc 


58  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

every  household  employment,  and  infuses  a  spirit 
of  alacrity  into  the  daily  duties  of  life.  Cheerful 
willingness  is  no  small  virtue  in  a  woman  ;  for  the 
duties  performed  with  a  smiling  countenance  and  a 
ready  hand  are  far  differently  done  from  those  which 
seem  wrung  out  of  necessity,  and  are  accompanied 
by  a  mournful  voice  and  a  languid  footstep.  A 
willing  mind  is  enjoined,  by  God's  word,  on  every 
performance  of  duty.  With  the  Most  High,  the 
motive  of  the  heart  is  regarded,  rather  than  the 
outward  act.  So  we  learn  that,  in  working  for 
God,  "if  there  be  first  a  willing  mind,  it  is  accepted 
according  to  that  a  man  hath,  and  not  according  to 
that  he  hath  not :"  while  to  both  mistress  and 
servant  comes  the  exhortation  respecting  the  humble 
duties  of  every-day  life,  "  Whatsoever  ye  do,  do  it 
heartily,  as  to  the  Lord,  and  not  unto  men/' 

If  we  consider  the  benefits  which  we  hourly 
receive  from  the  Great  Giver  of  all  good  gifts,  we 
shall  see  that  a  willing  cheerfulness  is  indeed  but 
the  proper  response  which  should  be  given  by  his 
human  family.  There  may,  it  is  true,  be  a  cheer- 
fulness which  is  in  no  way  connected  with  thank- 
fulness, but  never  yet  was  there  a  thankful  spirit 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  59 

which  did  not  lead  to  acts  of  cheerful  service. 
And,  notwithstanding  the  various  sorrows  which  sin 
has  brought  into  the  world,  yet  how  much  remains 
to  gladden  the  heart  of  one  who  is  disposed  to 
observe  God's  goodness !  How  do  all  our  senses 
minister  to  enjoyment!  The  sense  of  touch  and 
the  sense  of  taste  are  continually  gratified,  and 
delicious  odors  greet  us  from  a  thousand  flowers. 
And  the  eye  of  man,  how  is  it  an  inlet  to  wisdom, 
and  what  beautiful  forms  and  what  gorgeous  color- 
ings please  our  sight,  and  thus  charm  our  imagina 
tion,  till  we  are  lost  in  wonder  at  the  sublime,  01 
melt  in  tenderness  at  lowly  beauty !  And  the  ear, 
too,  made  as  it  is  to  receive  the  impression  of  all 
sweet  sounds  and  concords,  how  do  the  tunes  of 
birds,  and  the  roar  of  waters,  and  the  sweet  tink 
lings  of  the  distant  bell,  and  the  low  murmuring  of 
the  pleasant  brooks,  and  the  soothing  influence  of 
kindly  voices,  bring  through  it  a  song  of  joy  to  the 
spirit,  or,  sweeter  still,  a  song  of  softened  and  pen- 
sive tunefulness.  And  when  outward  nature  speaks 
to  us  through  the  senses,  then  and  then  only  is  it 
rightly  received,  while  it  tells  of  God  and  his  good- 
ness    and  when  the  grateful  heart  prompts  words 


60  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

of  thankfulness  to  the  ready  tongue,  and  the  willing 
hand  performs  the  active  service,  in  the  spirit  of 
him  who  said,  "  What  shall  I  render  unto  the  Lord 
for  all  his  mercies  ? " 

And  if  all  might  render  willing  service  to  God 
in  acknowledgment  of  mercies,  how  much  more 
shall  the  child  of  God  be  ready  to  perform  every 
duty  with  an  enlightened  thankfulness  ?  To  him  is 
given  the  precious  Bible  ;  on  him  are  bestowed  its 
promises,  cheering  him  under  every  sorrow,  and 
telling  him  that  God  is  with  him  in  the  darkest  hour, 
yea,  even  in  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death.  To 
him  is  access  given  to  the  throne  of  grace,  so  that 
his  prayers  rise  up  to  God,  through  the  intercession 
of  the  great  Mediator.  For  him  the  Saviour  lived 
a  life  of  sorrow  and  humiliation,  and  died  a  dishon- 
ored death,  that  his  sins  might  be  pardoned,  and  his 
soul  saved  from  the  wrath  which  God  denounces 
against  the  transgressors  of  his  holy  law.  To  him 
are  often  given  holy  aspirations  after  God's  presence, 
and  a  sure  sense  of  his  love  ;  so  that  he  seems  able 
to  join  even  in  the  songs  of  heaven,  and  his  spirit 
seems  carried  away  for  a  while  from  his  earthly 
house  up  to  that  glorious  home  of  rest  which  is 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  61 

eternal,  and  where  God  and  the  blessed  angels  shall 
at  last  receive  him. 

Every  one  must  have  remarked  how  pleasant  is 
that  household  in  which  a  cheerful  spirit  of  energy- 
is  cultivated  by  the  mistress  and  mother.  It  is  a 
pleasant  thing  to  dwell  with  one  who  is  not  troubled 
by  trifling  annoyances,  who  is  skilled  in  looking  at 
the  bright  side  of  things,  and  hoping  for  the  best ; 
with  one  who  believes  that  all  the  ways  of  the  Lord 
are  right,  and  who  attaches  a  deep  importance  to 
duty.  Such  a  one  will  work  willingly,  in  the  belief 
that  God  has  appointed  both  her  lot  and  her  duties ; 
and  it  is  surprising  how  many  obstacles  are  met  and 
overcome  by  such  a  spirit. 

The  wise  and  active  conquer  difficulties 
By  daring  to  attempt  them.     Sloth  and  folly 
Shiver  and  shrink  at  sight  of  toil  and  trouble, 
And  make  the  impossibilities  they  fear. 

The  employments  of  daily  life,  of  women  espe- 
cially, need  often  the  remembrance  that  they  are 
done  in  the  sight  of  him  in  whose  eye  the  lowliest 
act  is  of  importance.  There  are  many  persons  who 
do  not  perform  them  well,  because  they  do  not  look 


62  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

upon  them  as  part  of  their  religious  duties.  Such 
persons  could  perhaps  make  great  sacrifices  for  con- 
science' sake  ;  they  could  act  nobly  and  wisely  if 
any  great  service  were  demanded  ;  but  they  do  not 
consider  that  the  whole  progress  of  human  life  con- 
sists of  a  succession  of  small  acts.  It  is  often  with 
smaller  duties  as  with  smaller  trials,  that  strength 
to  do  or  to  bear  is  not  sought  of  God.  Some  great 
trial  befalls  us,  some  important  sacrifice  is  required, 
and,  feeling  our  helplessness,  we  fall  back  upon  God, 
and  support  is  given ;  but  every-day  events  are,  by 
their  very  monotony,  unimpressive ;  we  think  lightly 
of  them,  and  the  help  of  God  is  not  sought,  and  they 
are  not  duly  considered,  and  so  are  performed  in  a 
careless,  perhaps  in  an  unwilling  spirit.  But  he 
who  is  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth  looks  down  with 
approval  on  the  mother  whose  life  is  one  daily  course 
of  self-sacrifice,  on  the  daughter  whose  gentle  smiles 
and  willing  work  render  home  happy,  rather  than  on 
her  who  is  roused  from  a  course  of  usual  listlessness 
to  some  one  act  of  great  exertion,  or  to  some  one 
costly  deed  of  self-denial.  The  flash  of  lightning 
produces  a  great  effect ;  and  the  clearer  air  and  the 
cloudless  sky  show  that  it  has  well  performed  God's 


THE    ACTIVE    WOMAN.  63 

mission;  yet  who  would  not  rather  that  her  light 
should  shine  like  that  of  the  evening  star,  whose 
tranquil  rays  nightly  guide  the  traveller  home,  and 
cheer  the  mariner  on  the  deep,  and  smile  sweetly 
on  the  shepherd  who  watches  by  his  fold,  till  they 
"  fade  away  into  the  light  of  heaven"  1 

Who 's  born  for  sloth  ?    To  some  we  find 
The  ploughshare's  annual  toil  assigned ; 
Some  at  the  sounding  anvil  glow ; 
Some  the  swift-sliding  shuttle  throw ; 
Some,  studious  of  the  wind  and  tide, 
From  pole  to  pole  our  commerce  guide ; 
While  some,  of  genius  more  refined, 
With  head  and  tongue  assist  mankind. 
In  every  rank,  or  great  or  small, 
T  is  industry  supports  us  all. 


64  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    V. 

SHE   IS   LIKE   THE   MERCHANTS'   SHIPS  J    SHE   BRINGETH   HER   FOOD 
FROM   AFAR. 

ERCHANTS'  ships,  in  King  Solo- 
[mon's  days,  might,  indeed,  be  said  to 
bring  their  cargoes  from  afar.  If  we 
,  look  at  the  record  of  the  sea  voyages 
made  at  that  time,  when  the  Hebrew 
king  was  assisted  by  Hiram,  who  furnished 
►igjhim  with  "  shipmen  who  had  knowledge 
I  of  the  sea,"  we  shall  find  that  they  occu- 
pied a  very  considerable  period.  "  For  the 
'king  had  at  sea  a  navy  of  Tarshish  with  the 
•'  navy  of  Hiram ;  once  in  three  years  came 
the  navy  of  Tarshish,  bringing  gold,  and  silver, 
ivory,  and  apes,  and  peacocks."  The  Phoenicians, 
who  resided  on  the  north-west  of  Palestine,  are 
known  to  have  had  a  commercial  settlement,  called 
Tartessus,  on  the  Atlantic  coast  of  Spain,  near  to 
the  modern  Cadiz ;  and,  whatever  may  be  the 
various  opinions  respecting  the  situation  of  ancient 
Ophir,  there  is  little  doubt  that  this  port  was  the 


THE   ENTERPRISING    WOMAN.  67 

Tarshish  of  the  Scriptures.  In  the  imperfect  state 
of  navigation,  the  voyages,  performed  as  they  were 
in  small  and  ill-constructed  vessels,  would  seem  to 
the  Israelites  "afar,"  indeed,  and  attended  with 
very  considerable  peril. 

But,  as  food  rather  than  other  merchandise  seems 
alluded  to  in  the  text,  it  is  probable  that  the  ships 
which  brought  corn  from  Egypt  are  here  referred  to. 
Although  the  ancient  Hebrews  were  decidedly  an 
agricultural  community,  and  the  rich  valley  of  Pal- 
estine abounded  in  corn  and  wine,  yet,  in  seasons 
of  dearth,  as  well  as  on  other  occasions,  the  Jewish 
people  appear  to  have  traded  with  Egypt  for  corn. 
On  the  fertile  lands  of  that  well-watered  country 
corn  grew  so  abundantly  that  Egypt  was  the  general 
granary  of  the  East ;  and  the  touching  narrative  of 
Joseph  and  his  brethren  at  once  occurs  to  the  mind, 
as  an  instance  in  which  men  went  down  into  Egypt 
to  buy  corn. 

The  Israelites  were  by  no  means  a  maritime  peo- 
ple ;  yet  bordered  as  the  Holy  Land  was  by  the 
Great  Sea,  now  called  the  Mediterranean,  which 
was  the  very  highway  of  commerce,  and  familiar 
as  they  were  with  the  Nile,  on  whose  shores  their 
5 


68  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

fathers  had  rendered  a  hard  service  to  the  line  of 
Pharaohs,  they  doubtless  had  many  ships  of  burden, 
which  were,  at  least,  as  well  constructed  as  those 
in  the  western  parts  of  the  world  at  the  same  period 
of  time.  It  must  be  remembered  that  their  vessels 
were  almost  exclusively  ships  of  merchandise.  As 
yet,  no  battle-ship  had  carried  proud  defiance  to 
the  peaceful  shores  ;  no  cannon  thundered  its  awful 
challenges  on  the  deep  ;  but  the  ship,  in  its  occa- 
sional course  over  the  waters,  brought  from  afar  the 
luxuries  or  the  food  of  other  lands,  and  bore  in  its 
welcome  progress  nothing  to  fill  the  heart  with 
sorrow,  or  to  leave  a  trace  of  that  anguish  and 
desolation  which  war  brings  so  often  now  over  the 
distant  sea. 

Very  early  mention  is  made  in  Scripture  of  ships. 
"  Zebulun  shall  dwell  at  the  haven  of  the  sea  ;  and 
he  shall  be  for  an  haven  of  ships,"  was  the  pro- 
phecy of  the  dying  patriarch,  as  his  eye,  though 
dimmed  to  the  sights  of  this  world  by  the  film  of 
death,  glanced  forth  and  kindled  at  the  view  of 
futurity  ;  and  yet  no  regular  trade  by  sea  seems  to 
have  been  established  in  Solomon's  day,  since  he 
was  obliged  to  seek  aid  from  Hiram      Many  beau 


THE    ENTERPRISING    WOMAN.  69 

tiful  spots  on  the  shores  of  the  sea  are  familiar  to 
Scripture  readers,  and  the  vessels  which  floated  on 
the  Lake  of  Gennesareth  were  often  honored  by 
the  presence  of  Him  who  disdained  not  the  poor 
and  the  lowly,  but  gathered  his  apostles  from  among 
fishermen,  and,  standing  on  the  brow  of  a  Jewish 
vessel,  delivered  to  the  people  on  the  shore  those 
beautiful  parables,  and  those  teachings  of  heavenly 
love  and  wisdom,  which  brought  many  to  his  feet 
as  his  disciples,  and  are  now  the  treasure  of  mil- 
lions of  hearts,  to  whom  the  truths  taught  by  the 
Saviour  are  dearer  than  gold  or  silver,  more  pre- 
cious than  life  itself. 

The  Jewish  matron,  whose  various  kinds  of 
manufacture  are  so  specifically  named,  would  have 
much  to  offer  in  exchange  either  for  corn  or  other 
commodities,  which  the  merchants'  ships  convey. 
Garments  made  of  fine  wool  or  of  hair  stuffs, 
gorgeous  tapestry  wrought  by  her  own  hands,  fine 
linen  girdles, —  all  were  suitable  objects  of  barter  ; 
and  the  rich  clusters  of  grapes  whioh  her  vineyard 
could  furnish,  and  the  well-dried  flax  from  her 
fields,  constituted  a  store  from  which  something 
might  be -well  spared.     It  seems  probable,  how- 


70  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

ever,  that  the  articles  chiefly  sent  by  her,  either  to 
distant  tribes,  or  perhaps  occasionally  to  lands 
beyond  the  seas,  were  those  costly  and  magnificent 
dresses  which  form  the  wealth  of  the  eastern 
female,  and  which  are  highly  scented  with  per- 
fumes, anf"  laid  up  for  many  years,  to  be  brought 
out  only  on  important  occasions.  The  use  of  dresses 
also  as  presents,  in  the  East,  would  render  the  bar- 
ter of  them  a  very  likely  and  considerable  source 
of  profit;  and  this  would  enable  this  Jewish  lady, 
whose  intelligent  and  well-devoted  industry  is  so 
often  commended,  to  procure  for  her  family  some 
of  those  enjoyments  from  afar,  which  the  home 
produce  would  not  supply. 

Let  us,  then,  be  up  and  doing, 

With  a  heart  for  any  fate ; 
Still  achieving,  still  pursuing, 

Learn  to  labor  and  to  wait. 


3S^7  T©  HSJ5        ^^lJfP"L/' 
\>+  P   '     "<,. 

J"®RT]©?3  TO  J-3EJS  HAl&BMfe. 


THE    PROVIDENT   WOMAN.  73 


SECTION    VI. 

SHE   RI&ETH   ALSO   WniLE    IT   IS   YET   NIGHT,    AND   GIVETH   MEAT  TO 
HER   HOUSEHOLD,    AND   A   PORTION   TO   HER   MAIDENS. 

PROVERB  in  the  preceding  part 
of  this  book  says  that  "every  wise 
woman  buildeth  her  house,  while 
'the  foolish  plucketh  it  down  with 
*£  her  hands."  The  stability  and  com- 
fort of  the  household  are,  indeed,  so 
dependent  on  the  domestic  arrangements 
of  her  who  presides, —  punctuality  and 
order  in  the  wife  are  so  necessary  for  the 
preservation  of  the  property  which  may 
have  been  acquired, —  that  the  truth  of  the 
old  Irish  saying,  "A  man  must  ask  his  wife's 
leave  to  be  rich,"  is  very  apparent.  Early  risers 
will  not  often  be  found  among  those  whose  habits 
are  irregular  and  disorderly.  The  practice  of 
beginning  the  work  with  the  commencement  of  the 
day  is  almost  always  found  in  conjunction  with 
punctual  and  diligent  habits,  and  with  such  love  of 
order  and  management  as  is  described  in  the  text. 
5* 


74  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

The  learned  Aben  Ezra  poetically  interprets  the 
expression  of  the  former  part  of  the  verse,  "  She 
riseth  before  the  ascent  of  day."  Early  rising  in 
the  East  is  different  from  that  of  our  native  land. 
To  be  up  with  the  lark,  or  when  the  robin  is  first 
uttering  his  morning  song, —  to  brush  away  the 
pearls  from  the  grass,  while  the  sun  is  just  driving 
afar  the  gray  mists  of  the  morning,—  this  is,  with 
us,  to  rise  early.  But  the  diligent  man  of  eastern 
lands  is  up  long  before  sunrise,  long  before 

"  Morn,  her  rosy  steps 
Advancing,  sows  the  earth  with  orient  pearls;" 

and  has  begun  his  labor  at  an  hour  when  the  Euro- 
pean is  sleeping  still,  with  the  sound  sleep  of  mid- 
night. And  when  the  dawn  breaks  over  the  vine- 
yards of  Palestine,  and  the  sun  sheds  his  red 
lustre  on  her  ruddy  hills,  the  vine-dresser  has 
tended  his  vine,  and  the  shepherd  has  led  forth  his 
flock  from  the  fold.  In  the  city,  too,  the  merchant 
is  busy  in  the  shop  ;  and  the  courtier  and  the  king 
are  occupied  in  the  business  of  the  court ;  and  the 
women  are  spinning  the  web  of  industry.  Among 
the  Hebrews,  it  was  also  customary  for  the  diligent 


THE    PROVIDENT    WOMAN.  75 

women  to  be  up  earlier  than  the  men  ;  for  adding 
to  the  usual  domestic  employments  of  females  in 
general  the  duty  of  manufacturing  various  fabrics 
of  use  or  merchandise,  the  day  was  never  too  long 
for  their  busy  skill,  and  they  knew  nothing  of  that 
weariness  which  belongs  to  the  idle,  and  which 
deprives  them  of  that  freshness  and  energy  of  char- 
acter which  make  existence  a  blessing. 

We  find  continual  reference  in  Scripture  to  the 
habit  of  beginning  the  business  of  the  day  at  a  very 
early  hour  in  the  morning.  Thus,  when  Moses  was 
sent  to  Pharaoh,  by  the  Lord  God  of  the  Hebrews, 
and  the  haughty  king  was  commanded  to  let  the 
people  of  Israel  go  out  from  their  cruel  bondage, 
the  Jewish  lawgiver  was  commanded  to  rise  up 
early  in  the  morning,  and  to  stand  before  Pharaoh 
as  "  he  cometh  forth  to  the  water."  And  when 
the  vain  and  deceitful  Absalom  sought  to  win  away 
the  hearts  of  Israel  from  their  allegiance  to  his 
father,  "  he  rose  up  early,  and  stood  beside  the  way 
of  the  gate"  of  the  city;  for  he  well  knew,  that, 
passing  through  its  arches,  he  should  meet  those 
who  were  gcing  out  of  the  town  to  the  daily  labor 
of  the  fields,  or  find  there  assembled  the  concourse 


76  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

of  merchants.  And  in  that  day  of  Israel's  affliction 
and  reproach,  when  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  had 
been  broken  down,  and  the  gates  thereof  burned 
with  fire,  and  Nehemiah  and  the  Jews  labored 
amidst  danger  and  anxiety  to  build  again  the  walls 
of  their  beloved  city,  we  find  them  early  at  their 
work,  cheered  by  the  promises  and  prayers  of  the 
diligent  prophet ;  and  while  some  labored,  half  of 
them  "held  the  spears  from  the  rising  of  the 
morning  till  the  stars  appeared."  And  well  would 
it  be  for  us  if  we  could  return  to  the  early  rising 
and  retiring,  once  general  even  in  our  OAvn  land, 
when  our  forefathers  saw  the  sun  set  on  their  native 
hills,  and  slept  on  their  less  luxurious  couches,  at 
an  hour  far  earlier  than  the  business  of  the  day  now 
closes  on  busy  multitudes. 

The  description  given  by  the  Hebrew  writer  is  so 
graphic,  that  our  imaginations  can  easily  picture 
the  Jewish  matron,  as  surrounded  by  her  family  at 
early  day,  and  apportioning  to  each  of  her  house- 
hold, not  only  daily  food,  but  also  daily  work. 
One  is  going  to  the  field  ;  another,  to  relieve  the 
herdsman  who  has  watched  through  the  starry  night 
on  the  hill-side,  or  on  the  plain.     Her  daughters 


THE    PROVIDENT   WOMAN.  77 

and  her  maidens  will  ply  the  distaff,  or  with  the 
needle  weave  delicate  embroideries  ;  and  the 
materials  for  the  work  of  each  must  be  selected, 
and,  by  a  judicious  division  of  labor,  all  be  made 
easy.  And  in  this  diligent  and  well-ordered  family, 
not  only  must  the  domestic  animals  be  cared  for, 
but  the  young  infant  must  be  tended,  and  the  older 
child  taught  to  walk  in  wisdom's  ways,  and  to  know 
the  law  of  the  God  of  Israel.  The  word  here 
translated  "  portion"  seems  certainly  to  include 
work  as  well  as  food.  The  Targum  renders  it  by 
service,  and  interprets  the  passage  as  meaning 
employment,  rather  than  a  portion  of  daily  meat. 
The  same  word  is  used  in  Exodus  5 :  14,  when  the 
task-masters  of  the  children  of  Israel  demanded, 
"  Wherefore  have  ye  not  fulfilled  your  task  in 
making  brick  both  yesterday  and  to-day  as  hereto- 
fore ?"  The  Septuagint,  as  well  as  the  Syriac  and 
Arabic  versions,  render  the  word  "  works." 

The  ancient  custom  of  dividing  the  food  into 
separate  portions  is  alluded  to  not  only  in  several 
parts  of  the  Sacred  Scripture,  but  is  frequently 
mentioned  by  profane  writers.  Thus,  when  the 
ambassadors  of  Agamemnon  were  received  at  the 


78  THE    EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

table  of  Achilles,  the  warrior  distributed  to  every 
man  his  portion.  Among  the  Romans  an  officer 
presided  over  this  distribution  at  the  ancient  meal, 
and  seems  to  have  borne  a  similar  office  to  him  who 
is  mentioned,  in  the  narrative  of  the  marriage  of 
Cana,  as  the  governor  of  the  feast.  And  when 
Joseph  entertained  his  brethren  who  had  come  up 
to  Egypt,  we  mark  how,  with  the  peculiar  love 
which  the  man  of  the  East  feels  for  the  brother  who 
claims  the  same  mother  as  himself,  he  apportioned 
to  his  beloved  Benjamin  a  mess  five  times  as  large 
as  that  of  any  of  his  other  brethren.  Not  but  that 
each  had  a  portion  large  enough  for  his  refresh- 
ment, but  that  a  stronger  warmth  of  hospitality 
might  mark  his  deeper  love  to  him  whom  his  dying 
mother  had  called  "  the  son  of  my  sorrow." 

The  right  economy  of  time  is  a  highly  important 
duty.  To  those  who  are  called  to  exercise  the 
duties  of  active  life,  this  is  very  evident.  The  mis- 
tress, the  mother,  and  the  domestic  servant,  these 
will  all  feel  the  value  of  time  ;  yet  no  gift  is  more 
often  wasted  by  those  to  whom  God  has  allotted  a 
large  portion  of  leisure.  The  waste  of  time  is  a  sin 
especially  chargeable  on  a  large   number   of  the 


THE    PROVIDENT    WOMAN.  79 

female  sex  in  the  present  day.  Hours  are  wasted 
in  frivolous  accomplishments  ;  in  the  performance 
of  some  of  the  lighter  works  of  art ;  in  dissipated 
visiting  ;  in  reading  novels  and  idle  books,  and  in 
absolute  lounging  and  indolence  ;  so  that  if  we  could 
trace  the  history  of  the  life  of  many  an  English 
woman,  we  should  find  her  employments  of  little 
more  worth  to  herself  and  others  than  those  of  the 
butterfly  which  skims  from  flower  to  flower,  the  gay 
creature  of  the  summer's  day.  And  yet  to  every 
reasonable  being  existence  brings  an  amount  of 
responsibility  which  we  shall  comprehend  only  in 
eternity.  Time  is  given  us  for  duty,  for  the  prep- 
aration for  a  future  state,  for  the  good  of  others  ; 
and  every  fragment  of  it  should  be  gathered  up, 
that  nothing  of  so  precious  a  gift  may  be  lost.  It 
should  become  a  subject  of  deep  and  frequent 
thought  to  every  woman,  and  especially  to  every 
Christian  woman,  whether  her  time  is  rightly  spent. 
Owing  to  the  great  improvements  in  manufactures, 
and  the  high  civilization  of  modern  society,  women 
in  the  middle  and  higher  classes  -of  life  are  rarely 
required  to  apply  unremittingly  to  any  pursuit 
which  can  be  called  toil  or  labor.     Many  have  no 


80  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

pursuit  at  all.  And  is  there  nothing  to  do,  that 
God  should  look  down  on  the  couch  of  the  luxurious, 
when  the  morning  sun  has  long  shed  his  light  on  its 
drapery,  and  should  see  the  sleeper  still  seeking 
repose  ?  Is  there  nothing  that  the  daughter  or  sister 
can  do  to  lighten  the  cares  or  anxieties  of  parents  or 
brothers  ?  Is  there  no  active  duty,  which,  if  cheer- 
fully done,  would  make  home  happier  ?  If  we  are 
not  required,  like  the  excellent  women  of  old,  to 
rise  while  it  is  yet  night,  and  to  apportion  to  those 
of  our  household  food  or  work,  yet  there  is  still 
enough  to  do.  There  are  our  hearts  to  examine,  as 
in  the  sight  of  God.  There  are  prayer  and  medita- 
tion, and  reading  of  the  Scripture,  all  best  done  in 
the  quiet  of  early  day,  ere  the  noise  and  tumult  of 
the  tempting  world  have  distracted  the  thoughts. 
David  could  say,  when  referring  to  his  moments  of 
prayer,  "My  soul  prevented  the  dawning  of  the 
morning,"  and  could  deem  it  a  "good  thing"  to 
"  show  forth  the  loving  kindness  of  the  Lord  in  the 
morning;"  and  as  his  soul  thirsted  for  God,  he 
exclaimed,  "  Early  will  I  seek  thee."  In  the 
solemn  moment  of  approaching  suffering,  our  Saviour 


THE    PROVIDENT    WOMAN.  81 

himself  rose  a  great  while  before  day,  that  he  might 
commune  with  his  Father. 

But,  beside  the  study  of  God's  word,  there  is 
also  the  duty  of  mental  improvement.  For  this  end, 
we  should  seek  to  redeem  the  time,  and  see  that  the 
early  hours  are  not  wasted.  An  hour  gained  daily 
from  sleep, — how  much  might  be  done  With  this, 
in  the  study  of  any  valuable  species  of  knowledge  ! 
How  much  might  we  learn  of  any  one  portion  of 
nature,  by  an  hour  of  daily  reading  and  observation  ! 
And  does  not  nature  tell  of  God  1  It  is  not  the 
stars  alone,  and  the  sun  and  moon,  which  speak  of 
God's  greatness  and  power,  and  so  from  day  unto 
day  utter  speech,  and  from  night  unto  night  teach 
knowledge.  All  his  works  praise  him.  The  sea, 
with  its  ebb  and  flow,  and  changing  tides,  and  all  its 
curious  store  of  weeds  and  corals,  and  its  silver- 
spangled  fishes,  has  a  wTondrous  lesson  to  teach  the 
docile  spirit,  of  God's  power  and  love.  The  softly- 
flowing  stream,  gladdening  the  verdant  herbage,  and 
serving  as  a  home  of  happiness  to  the  living  crea- 
tures which  inhabit  it,  and  as  a  scene  of  sport  to  the 
brilliant-winged  insects,  of  all  the  bright  hues  of 
earth  and  heaven,  which  hover  above  it ;  the  flowery 
6 


82  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

meadow  and  the  dark-robed  forest ;  the  bird,  with 
its  plumage  dipped  in  hues  of  Paradise,  and  its  song 
suggesting  thoughts  of  poetry,  —  all,  all  have  been 
studied  by  human  minds,  which  have  lived  in  ages 
before  we  were  born,  and  their  wonders  and  their 
histories  have  been  traced  by  human  pens,  and  we 
may  read  their  records  in  books,  and  learn  their 
teachings  beneath  the  morning  sunshine.  And 
health,  too,  that  valuable  blessing,  how  greatly  is  it 
promoted  by  early  hours !  Many  diseases,  and 
especially  those  called  nervous  disorders,  were 
almost  unknown  in  Britain  a  few  ages  since,  when 
luxury  had  not  yet  made  it  a  common  practice  to 
be  found  in  bed  in  full  day.  Many  serious  illnesses 
would  take  their  flight  before  the  long-continued  and 
diligent  practice  of  an  early  morning  walk  ;  and  the 
cheek  now  pale  from  indolent  habits,  and  the  -eye 
now  dim  from  want  of  the  exercise  required  by  the 
frame,  might  glow  and  sparkle  with  the  bloom  and 
vigor  of  life,  if,  like  the  country  laborer  or  the 
diligent  rustic  maiden,  and  the  excellent  woman  of 
the  text,  we  should  rise  wTith  the  ascent  of  day. 
And  if  we  redeemed  an  hour  in  the  morning,  it 
might  leave  us  one  in  the  after  day  to  visit  the  poor 


THE    PROVIDENT    WOMAN.  83 

and  afflicted,  to  instruct  the  ignorant,  to  help  those 
who  need  our  aid.  If  household  duties  demanded 
exertion,  then  the  gained  hour  might  enable  us  to 
pass  through  them  more  leisurely  and  more  pleas- 
antly, and  we  might  be  saved  the  irritation  of 
hurried  business  ;  or,  if  we  gave  that  hour  to  God, 
who  shall  say  what  blessings  our  prayers  might 
bring  down  on  ourselves  and  on  those  dear  to  us, 
•  -  on  the  church  of  God  and  on  the  wTorld  at  large  ' 

Her  might  is  gentleness ;  she  winneth  sway 
By  a  soft  word  and  softer  look ; 
Where  she,  the  gentle,  loving  one,  hath  failed, 
The  proud  or  stern  might  never  yet  succeed. 

Strength,  power  and  majesty,  belong  to  man ; 
They  make  the  glory  native  to  his  life ; 
But  sweetness  is  a  woman's  attribute ; 
By  that  she  reigns,  and  will  forever  reign. 

There  have  been  some  who,  with  a  mightier  mind, 
Have  won  dominion ;  but  they  never  won 
The  dearer  empire  of  the  beautiful,  — 
Sweet  sovereigns  of  their  natural  loveliness. 


84 


THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    VII. 

SUE   CCNSIDERETH   A   FIELD,    AND   BUYETH   IT ;    WITH   THE   FRUIT   OF 
HER   HANDS   SHE   PLANTETH   A   VINEYARD. 

HILE  we  observe  how  various  were 
the  employments  of  the  Hebrew 
woman,  we  cannot  fail  to  remark  the 
great  and  entire  confidence  which 
'must  have  been  placed  in  her  by  her 
husband.  That  he  should  leave  to  her 
I  care  the  management  of  her  house  and 
servants,  and  in  great  measure  the  train- 
ing of  her  children,  seems,  at  all  times, 
natural,  and  in  the  state  of  society  we  are 
^considering,  peculiarly  so;  but  we  should 
scarcely  expect  to  find  a  Jewish  female  left  so 
entirely  to  her  own  judgment  in  matters  of  business. 
It  was  probably,  however,  not  unusual  at  this  time. 
Abigail,  the  wife  of  Nabal,  seems  to  have  had  an 
entire  command  over  the  family  property,  when  she 
hesitated  not  to  take  two  hundred  loaves,  and  two 
bottles  of  wine,  and  five  sheep  ready  dressed,  and 
fruits  and  other  valuable  articles  of  food,  and  give 


©  ©  ?i  si  e>  e r  e  f  h  49   ISc^cST ,x' 

a  FIEL©,  ASS©  IftyvSTM  ITj 
W I  *  H    T  "M  I   P  RUi  T  @  ?    HIS    IH  A  59  IB  8         5* 
SHE  PLAMTRH  A  ¥B69£YAAe.  * 


THE    MANAGING    WOMAN.  87 

them  to  David.  That  the  woman  of  the  text  was 
worthy  of  this  entire  confidence  is  very  evident, 
for  hers  was  the  systematic  industry  of  a  well- 
ordered  mind,  and  not  the  occasional  result  of  mere 
impulse.  She  deliberated  on  the  best  plan  to  be 
pursued.  She  saw  that  her  children  were  rising 
up,  her  household  numerous,  her  husband  a  man  of 
wealth  and  distinction ;  and  the  requirements  of 
such  a  family  demanded  a  careful  consideration. 

Perhaps,  in  looking  around  her  in  order  to  make 
a  provision  for  an  increasing  household,  the  eye  of 
the  Hebrew  woman  often  rested  on  some  field  of 
waving  corn  which  lay  near  her  own  estate  ;  and 
she  saw,  in  its  golden  ears,  the  prospect  of  an 
abundant  store  for  the  food  of  her  family  ;  and  then, 
with  the  fruits  of  her  own  hands,  the  works  which 
her  own  fingers  had  wrought,  she  purchased  the 
land.  The  luxuriant  vegetation  of  the  vineyard, 
watered  by  the  fruitful  rill,  or  lying  on  the  hill-side, 
where  the  morning  sun  shed  most  of  his  light  and 
warmth,  would  attract  her  notice,  and  the  wild 
roses,  and  the  bright  pomegranates,  shedding  the 
deep  red  lustre  of  their  flowers  in  the  hedges  which 
surrounded  it,  and  wafting  to  her  some  of  the 
6* 


88  THE     EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

sweetest  of  eastern  odors,  would  convince  her  that 
the  soil  which  yielded  them  would  repay  careful 
culture. 

The  rich  drapery  of  the  vine,  though  now  less 
cultivated  in  the  Holy  Land,  once  formed  one  of 
its  most  striking  and  picturesque  objects.  Far  away 
over  the  hills  of  the  then  fruitful,  though  now  neg- 
lected Palestine,  might  be  heard  the  joyous  song 
of  the  vine-dressers,  speaking  of  peace  and  plenty, 
and  attesting  the  happy  feeling  and  the  joyous 
emotion  of  the  natives  of  a  pure  and  lovely  climate, 
whose  animal  spirits  and  earnest  feelings  seemed 
wrought  upon  by  the  gladness  of  nature,  till  they 
flowed  forth  in  song.  And  many  a  pious  Israelite 
may  have  sung  with  the  sweet  singer  of  his  country, 
"  The  earth  is  the  Lord's,  and  the  fulness  thereof;" 
and  as  he  looked  upon  his  rich  corn-fields,  have 
chanted  gladly,  "Thou  visitest  the  earth,  and 
waterest  it ;  thou  greatly  enrichest  it  with  the  rivei 
of  God,  which  is  full  of  water ;  thou  preparest 
them  corn,  when  thou  hast  so  provided  for  it.  Thou 
crownest  the  year  with  thy  goodness  ;  and  thy 
paths  drop  fatness." 

But  although  the  modern  inhabitant  of  Palestine 


THE    MANAGING    WOMAN.  89 

no  longer  labors  assiduously,  as  did  the  ancient 
Israelite,  to  render  his  beautiful  land  an  earthly- 
paradise,  though  in  many  parts  joy  and  gladness 
have  ceased  from  the  fruitful  field,  and  all  the 
daughters  of  music  are  brought  low,  yet  the  vine- 
yards are  often  beautiful  still.  On  the  Syrian  hills 
and  plains  may  yet  be  seen  the  tower  or  the  lonely 
cottage  in  a  vineyard,  on  which  the  eye  of  the 
evangelical  prophet  rested  when  he  foretold  the 
desolation  of  the  daughter  of  Zion  ;  or  when  he 
spake  of  the  vineyard  in  the  fruitful  hill,  planted 
with  the  choicest  vine,  in  which  the  lord  of  the 
vineyard  built  a  tower,  and  made  a  wine-press,  and 
looked  for  the  grateful  fruits  of  his  culture,  and 
found  nothing  but  wild  grapes, —  sad  emblem  of  the 
sins  and  idolatries  which  ran  wild  in  the  heart  of 
God's  chosen  and  cherished  people.  In  this  tower 
of  the  vineyard  were  kept,  in  former  days,  and  may 
still  be  seen,  the  various  implements  of  husbandry, 
and  all  the  means  of  pressing  the  grapes  and 
making  them  into  wine,  so  that  it  may  be  called 
"the  farm  of  the  vineyard."  But  the  chief  use 
of  the  tower,  both  in  ancient  and  modern  times,  is 
as  a  dwelling-place  and  defence  to  the  keeper  of  the 


90  THE     EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

vineyard,  who,  when  the  grapes  are  ripening,  takes 
his  station  there,  lest  others  should  deprive  him  of 
the  produce  of  his  labor.  McCheyne,  describing 
the  vineyards  of  Hebron,  as  he  saw  them  in  the 
year  1842,  says,  "They  are  of  the  most  rich  and 
fertile  description,  each  one  having  a  tower  in  the 
midst  for  the  keeper  of  the  vineyards.  We  were 
told  that  bunches  of  grapes  from  these  vineyards 
sometimes  weigh  six  pounds,  every  grape  of  which 
weighs  six  or  seven  drachms.  Sir  Moses  Montefiore 
mentioned  that  he  got  here  a  bunch  of  grapes  about 
a  yard  in  length." 

It  is  not  possible  for  the  reader  of  Scripture  to 
have  passed  unnoticed  the  various  allusions  to  the 
culture  of  the  grape  by  the  Hebrews.  The  great 
care  which  they  bestowed  on  their  vineyards,  in 
selecting  an  appropriate  spot  of  land  for  their 
growth,  as  well  as  in  training  the  vine,  is  very 
apparent  from  the  records  of  Holy  Writ.  Almost 
every  part  of  Palestine  is  favorable  to  the  culture 
of  the  grape  ;  but  the  grapes  of  Eshcol,  and  Car- 
mel,  and  Hermon,  and  the  wines  of  Lebanon,  were 
ever  renowned  for  their  sweetness,  and  are  still 
unrivalled  in  the  land  of  the  sun.     Sometimes  the 


THE    MANAGIftu     WOMAN.  91 

luxuriant  plant  hung  its  graceful  festoons  about  the 
reed  trellis  ;  at  others  it  clung  from  pole  to  pole, 
or  clad  the  wooden  palisade  with  a  garment  of 
verdure.  Often,  too,  the  vine-dresser  directed  its 
flexible  branches  over  the  side  of  the  sunny  wall, 
and  then  its  boughs,  as  they  ran  over  their  support, 
suggested  such  images  as  lingered  in  the  mind  of 
the  dying  Jacob,  when,  describing  the  fruitfulness, 
and  alluding  to  the  protection  given  by  his  beloved 
son,  he,  in  the  figurative  language  of  the  eastern 
husbandman,  said,  "  Joseph  is  a  fruitful  bough, 
even  a  fruitful  bough  by  the  side  of  a  well ;  whose 
branches  run  over  the  wall." 

Frequent  and  beautiful  as  are  the  poetic  figures 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  yet  no  object  of 
nature  furnished  so  great  a  variety  of  allusions  as 
did  the  vine.  Wherever  the  ancient  Israelite 
looked  around,  there  its  broad  leaves  and  wide- 
spreading  boughs,  and  its  purple  clusters,  caught 
his  eye  ;  and  the  holy  prophet  of  old,  and  the 
Divine  Saviour  himself,  ever  ready  to  lead  the  mind 
from  the  fields  of  nature  to  the  field  of  holy  thought 
and  spiritual  communion,  failed  not  to  associate 
with  it  such  lessons  of  joy  and  thankfulness,  or  of 


92  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

solemn  admonition,  as  might  recur  again  and  again, 
in  after  ages,  to  him  who  walked  in  the  vineyard. 
In  the  earliest  parable  of  Scripture,  that  of  the 
Trees  choosing  a  King,  we  find  the  vine,  in  the 
language  of  allegory,  exclaiming,  "  Shall  I  leave 
my  wine,  which  cheereth  God  and  man,  and  go  to 
be  promoted  over  the  trees  ?"  thus  adverting  to  the 
use  of  wine  in  sacrifice,  or  to  the  first- fruit  offering 
of  the  grape  on  the  altar  of  God,  as  well  as  to  its 
benefit  to  mankind.  In  that  beautiful  lament  of 
forsaken  Israel,  expressed  in  Psalm  lxxx.,  the 
writer  portrays  the  sorrows  of  the  church  of  God, 
under  the  image  of  a  vine  ;  and  carries  out,  through 
a  long  succession,  a  series  of  figures  so  beautiful 
and  touching,  that  he  who  now  reads  it  mourns 
over  ancient  Israel's  woes,  and  remembers,  too, 
periods  in  the  history  of  the  Christian  church  when 
the  vine  seemed  indeed  trodden  down,  and  when, 
for  "a  small  moment,"  God  "  hid  his  face"  from 
his  people.  "  Once,"  says  the  sorrowing  Asaph, 
"  the  hills  were  covered  with  the  shadow  of  it,  and 
the  boughs  were  like  goodly  cedars.  She  sent  out 
her  boughs  to  the  sea,  and  her  branches  unto  the 
river.     Now  the  boar  out  of  the  wood  doth  waste 


THE    MANAGING    WOMAN.  93 

it,  and  the  wild  beast  of  the  field  doth  devour  it." 
And  surely  as  we  look  upon  God's  ancient  people, 
and  see  how  their  loved  and  holy  city  is  trodden 
down  of  the  Gentiles,  we  should  breathe  the  aspi- 
ration of  the  Psalmist,  "  Return,  we  beseech  thee, 
0  God  of  Hosts  ;  look  down  from  heaven,  and 
behold,  and  visit  this  vine  ;  and  the  vineyard  which 
thy  right  hand  hath  planted,  and  the  branch  that 
thou  madest  strong  for  thyself."  In  later  days,  our 
Saviour  told  his  disciples,  "  I  am  the  true  vine,  and 
my  Father  is  the  husbandman.  As  the  branch 
cannot  bear  fruit  of  itself,  except  it  abide  in  the 
vine  ;  no  more  can  ye,  except  ye  abide  in  me." 
Then  perchance  he  looked  from  the  table,  around 
which  the  disciples  were  gathered,  and  saw  the 
graceful  plant  waving  to  the  gentle  summer  wind, 
and  putting  forth  its  fruits  for  the  vintage. 

There  is  something  pleasing  in  considering  the 
Hebrew  matron  in  the  text  as  planting  a  vineyard 
for  the  use  of  her  family.  It  was  not  enough  for 
her  that  only  what  was  absolutely  needed  should  be 
supplied.  She  acted  in  the  wise  and  beneficent 
spirit  of  the  great  Creator,  who  scatters,  with  liberal 
hand,  not  only  the  supply  of  our  necessities,  but 
the  means  of  enjoyment ;  who  charms  the  eye  with 


94  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

verdure,  and  the  ear  with  the  songs  of  nature.  We, 
in  our  northern  climate,  can  scarcely  form  an  idea 
of  the  value  of  the  vineyard  to  an  eastern  family ; 
the  cooling  shade  of  its  overhanging  boughs,  in  a 
land  where  the  sun  shines  hotly  through  the  long 
summer  day,  is  indeed  delightful  ;  and  in  the  Syrian 
vine-clad  arbor,  the  Jewish  families  assembled,  as 
do  the  natives  of  modern  Palestine,  beneath  the 
vine  and  fig-tree.  There,  in  pleasant  groups,  sit- 
ting in  the  soft  air,  we  can  fancy  the  pious  mother, 
surrounded  by  her  family,  speaking  with  cheerful 
and  thankful  spirit  of  God's  goodness  to  them  all, 
and  partaking  together  with  them  of  the  large 
clusters  of  yellow  or  purple  fruits,  gathered  from 
the  boughs.  There  lay  the  goodly  cluster,  and 
each  took  from  it  the  welcome  refreshment ;  and 
of  the  fruits  which  were  to  spare,  the  laborer  gath- 
ered and  packed  in  baskets,  and  probably  laid,  as 
they  would  do  now,  the  broad  palm-leaves  above 
them,  to  preserve  their  coolness. 

The  month  of  October  is  that  of  the  vintage ;  and 
on  the  hills  once  trod  by  the  feet  of  the  patriarchs 
the  autumnal  vintage  is  yet  gathered.  The  Christian 
inhabitants  of  Lebanon,  and  other  parts  of  Palestine, 
cultivate  the  grape  for  wine,  both  for  themselves 


THE    MANAGING  WOMAN.  95 

and  for  exportation  ;  and  the  Moslems,  as  they  do 
not  drink  wine,  value  the  vine  for  its  shadow,  its 
fresh  fruit,  and  for  the  raisins  which  they  dry 
from  it ;  besides  that,  vinegar  is  made  from  the 
grape,  and  the  vine-leaves  are  eaten  by  cattle. 
This  latter  practice  is  referred  to  in  the  Jewish  law, 
where  Moses  commands,  "  If  a  man  shall  cause  a 
field  or  vineyard  to  be  eaten,  and  shall  put  in  his 
beast,  and  shall  feed  in  another  man's  field  ;  of  the 
best  of  his  own  field,  and  of  the  best  of  his  own 
vineyard,  shall  he  make  restitution."  Chandler 
says  of  this  practice  in  the  East :  "  We  remarked 
that  about  Smyrna  the  leaves  were  decayed  or 
stripped  by  the  camels  and  herds  of  goats,  which 
are  admitted  to  browse  after  the  vintage." 

Travellers  who  now  visit  the  Holy  Land  are 
struck,  however,  with  the  desolate  appearance 
exhibited  by  spots  once  famous  for  corn  and  wine, 
and  the  luxuriant  vegetation  of  the  East.  God  has 
turned  "  the  fruitful  land  into  barrenness,  for  the 
wickedness  of  them  that  dwelt  therein."  The  old 
inhabitants  of  the  land  of  the  Hebrews  are  scattered 
as  God  predicted ;  and  the  thin  population  of 
strangers  who  now  dwell  there  take  little  pains  to 
7 


96  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

cherish  the  soil.  The  want  of  agricultuial  industry 
is  everywhere  apparent ;  and  he  who  loves  the  hill 
of  Zion  and  the  mountains  about  Jerusalem,  because 
associated  in  his  mind  with  all  that  is  holy  and  all 
that  is  dear,  longs  for  that  glorious  day  when  the 
Jews  shall  again  be  gathered  under  their  native 
vines  and  fig-trees. 

It  is  thought  by  most  writers  that  the  autumnal 
feast  of  Tabernacles,  held  by  the  Jews,  had  especial 
reference  to  the  ingathering  of  the  vineyard. 
"  When  ye  have  gathered  in  the  fruit  of  the  land, 
ye  shall  keep  a  feast  unto  the  Lord  seven  days," 
were  the  words  which  enjoined  this  festival.  The 
Syrian  winter  does  not  commence  until  December ; 
and  in  that  pleasant  climate  the  month  of  October 
was  well  suited  for  the  joyous  out-door  life  which 
ancient  Israel  spent  on  this  occasion.  Then  the 
song  of  praise  and  gratitude  went  up  from  the 
arbors  formed  of  the  "  boughs  of  goodly  trees, 
branches  of  palm-trees,  and  the  boughs  of  thick 
trees,  and  willows  of  the  brook."  Then  a  loud 
burst  of  national  thanksgiving  was  offered  to  the 
God  who  brought  his  people  into  a  land  flowing  with 
milk  and  with  honey  ;  and  every  Jewish  family 
brought  its  tribute  of  gratitude  and  praise. 


STUB 


THE    ENERGETIC     WOMAN. 


99 


SECTION  VIII. 

SHE     GIRDETH    HER    LOINS    WITH     STRENGTH,    AND     STRENGTHENETH 
HER   ARMS. 

EFERENCE  is  had,  in  this  figurative 
expression,  to  the  practice  of  girding 
Rightly  for  any  great  exertion.  The 
girdle  which  confines  the  loose  and 
flowing  garments  of  the  native  of  the 
East  is  broad  and  long,  and  can,  when 
occasion  requires  it,  be  bound  several 
times  round  the  waist  and  over  the  chest. 
This  tight  girding  enables  the  men  of 
oriental  countries  to  perform  wonderful  feats 
of  strength,  especially  in  running  ;  as  they 
will  make  a  journey  of  several  miles,  keeping  pace 
with  a  horseman,  or  with  the  chariot  of  the  great 
man.  Sometimes  the  girdle  is  so  tightly  bound  as 
to  endanger  life;  and  the  editor  of  the  "  Pictorial 
Bible"  mentions  that  he  saw,  at  Ispahan,  a  pillar 
raised  to  mark  the  spot  on  which  one  of  these 
tightly-girded  runners  expired,  in  attempting  to 
stoop  to  the  ground. 


100  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

Scripture  contains  many  references  to  this  prac- 
tice of  girding.  Thus  we  read,  that  when  the 
prophet  Elijah  accompanied  the  bold  and  wicked 
king,  "he  girded  up  his  loins,  and  ran  before 
Ahab  to  the  entrance  of  Jezreel."  Even  on  occa- 
sions which  demanded  less  exertion,  it  was  usual  to 
gather  up  the  garment  under  the  girdle,  lest  it 
might  incommode  the  progress  of  the  wearer.  So 
our  blessed  Saviour  represents  the  master  as 
addressing  his  servant,  "  Make  ready  wherewith  I 
may  sup,  and  gird  thyself,  and  serve  me,  till  I  have 
eaten  and  drunken;"  and,  when  urging  his  disci- 
ples to  a  constant  readiness  for  that  spiritual  warfare 
which  they  must  encounter,  and  that  watchfulness 
which  the  servants  of  the  Lord  must  always  exer- 
cise, he  said,  "  Let  your  loins  be  girded  about,  and 
your  lights  burning  ;  and  ye  yourselves  like  unto 
men  that  wait  for  their  lord." 

This  figure  of  girding  the  loins  would  be  espec- 
ially expressive  to  the  eastern,  as  well  as  to  the 
ancient  Greek  and  Eoman  people,  among  whom  the 
practice  prevailed.  With  the  latter,  it  was  con- 
sidered very  effeminate  for  a  man  to  be  seen  abroad 
either  without  his  girdle,  or  loosely  girded  ,  and  to 


THE    ENERGETIC    WOMAN.  101 

be  ungirt  became  an  expression  of  an  unmanly 
luxury.  Sulla  reproached  Csesar  that  he  was 
ungirt ;  and  Maecenas  was  blamed  because  he  wore 
his  girdle  loosely. 

Boothroyd  renders  the  passage, 

She  girdeth  up  her  loins  for  strength, 
And  by  exercise  giveth  vigor  to  her  arms ; 

and  it  very  evidently  implies  that  she  preserved  her 
health  by  the  very  best  means — that  of  cheerful  and 
earnest  employment.  When  we  look  at  our  bodily 
frames,  and  see  how  they  are  formed  for  exercise, — 
when  we  mark  how  the  muscles  of  the  active  arm 
are  firm,  and  those  of  the  indolent  soft  and  tender, — 
we  see  something  of  the  bodily  ills  to  which  indo- 
lence exposes,  and  are  convinced  that  a  healthy 
frame  can  be  preserved  only  by  a  due  attention  to 
activity  ;  and  when  we  mark,  too,  how  painful  and 
weary  a  thing  sickness  is,  and  how  great  is  the 
physical  enjoyment  of  health,  it  seems  strange  that 
exercise  is  so  much  neglected  by  thousands  who 
have  the  means  of  taking  it.  How  much  exquisite 
enjoyment  is  afforded  by  the  mere  possession  of 
health! — the  pure  taste,  the  high  spirits,  which 
7* 


102  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

render  existence  itself  an  enjoyment  and  a  blessing  , 
the  good  humor,  the  pleasure  in  innocent  delights, 
the  light  and  refreshing  sleep,  the  appetite  which 
needs  no  dainties,  the  untiring  footstep,  and  the 
placid  breathing,  which  scarcely  quickens  at  the 
ascent  of  the  mountain !  0,  if  some  of  those  of 
the  female  sex,  who  now  spend  their  days  on  sofas, 
and  their  nights  in  unquiet  dreams,  would,  like  the 
excellent  woman,  strengthen  their  arms  by  exercise, 
and  gird  up  their  loins  by  some  vigorous  employ- 
ment, how  great  a  change  should  come  over  their 
constitutions,  and  how  great  a  blessing  should  they 
gain  for  themselves ! 

There  are  also  higher  considerations  than  those 
of  mere  enjoyment  which  should  induce  us  to  cul- 
tivate the  means  of  health.  To  do  so  is  a  religious 
duty.  Health  is  one  of  the  gifts  which  God  has 
bestowed  for  usefulness  —  one  of  those  talents  of 
which  he  has  said,  "  Occupy  till  I  come  ;"  and  if 
it  be  wasted  either  by  intemperance,  indolence,  or 
carelessness,  we  shall  have  to  account  for  it  at  the 
great  and  solemn  day  of  final  retribution.  If  the 
hand  of  God  deprive  us  of  it,  then  may  we  calmly 
say,  "  The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken 


THE    ENERGETIC    WOMAN.  103 

away;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord;"  and 
appropriate  the  blessed  promises  to  sufferers  con- 
tained in  Holy  Writ ;  and  while  we  remember  that 
they  also  serve  God  who  only  stand  and  wait,  we 
may  learn  many  blessed  lessons,  when,  like  David, 
we  can  say,  "  Before  I  was  afflicted  I  went  astray  ; 
but  now  I  have  kept  thy  word."  But  if  God  has 
given  us  a  robust  constitution,  or  at  least  one  that 
might,  by  exertion,  be  rendered  such,  then  our  very 
sickness  is  a  sin.  "  Health,"  says  Jeremy  Taylor, 
"  is  the  opportunity  of  wisdom,  the  fairest  scene 
of  religion,  the  advantages  of  the  glorification  of 
God,  and  the  charitable  ministries  of  men  ;  it  is  a 
state  of  joy  and  thanksgiving,  and  in  every  one  of 
its  periods  feels  a  pleasure  from  the  blessed  emana- 
tions of  a  merciful  Providence.  No  organs,  no 
lute,  can  sound  out  the  praises  of  the  Almighty 
Father  so  spritefully  as  the  man  that  rises  from  his 
bed  of  sorrows,  and  considers  what  an  excellent 
difference  he  feels  from  the  groans  and  intolerable 
accents  of  yesterday."  Health  carries  us  to  the 
place  of  worship,  and  helps  us  to  rejoice  in  the 
communion  of  saints. 

But  though  the  text  has  an  especial  reference  to 


104  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

the  strengthening  of  the  body,  yet  that  vigorous 
resolution  inculcated  by  the  apostle  Paul  may  also 
be  intimated  here :  "  Wherefore,"  says  the  inspired 
writer,  "  gird  up  the  loins  of  your  mind,  be  sober, 
and  hope  to  the  end."  A  holy  resolution,  a  moral 
courage,  a  steady  determination  in  all  things  to  obey 
the  voice  of  conscience,  seems  a  strong  feature  of 
the  character  of  the  Jewish  woman.  It  is  true  that 
no  resolution  made  in  our  own  strength  can  avail 
us.  Our  hearts  are  sinful  by  nature,  and  ever 
ready  to  depart  from  God  and  holiness.  Satan, 
like  a  roaring  lion,  seeking  whom  he  may  devour, 
is  ever  watching  to  hinder  the  progress  of  every 
right  resolve.  The  world,  with  its  anxious  cares 
on  the  one  hand,  and  its  fascinating  vanities  on  the 
other,  is  present  with  us  to  banish  every  pious 
motive,  and  drive  us  into  forgetfulness  and  sinful 
weakness.  Yet,  unless  we  resolve  rightly,  we 
cannot  act  rightly  ;  and  there  is  a  way  of  keeping 
the  promise  made  to  our  own  hearts  and  to  God. 
There  is  a  strength  given  to  all  who  humbly  ask  it, 
in  the  name  of  the  Great  Mediator  ;  a  strength  to 
will,  to  do,  and  to  endure,  even  to  the  death  ;  a 
strength,  given  by  God,  enabling  the  timid  to  be 


THE    ENERGETIC    WOMAN.  105 

brave,  ai_d  imparting  a  consistent  firmness,  even  to 
those  who  feel  themselves  ready  to  be  shaken  by 
every  breeze.  But  unless  we  seek  from  Heaven 
this  consistent  firmness  of  principle,  our  goodness 
shall  be  but  as  the  morning  cloud,  and  as  the  early 
dew  that  passeth  away.  Without  it,  no  Christian 
course  can  be  a  happy  or  a  useful  one.  It  is  not 
enough  to  know  and  approve  what  is  right.  Prin- 
ciple must  be  acted  upon,  whether  the  world  smile 
or  condemn ;  and  the  diligent  and  steady  cultiva- 
tion of  firmness  be  sought  in  humble  dependence 
on  God.  And  as  the  eastern  traveller  girded  his 
garments  from  the  dust,  so,  too,  must  Christians 
keep  themselves  unspotted  from  the  contamination 
of  vain  intercourse,  and  the  defilement  of  sin  ;  and 
as  the  Hebrew  matron  girded  herself  for  strength, 
so  should  we  strive  to  invigorate  our  principles  by 
holy  determination,  by  steady  watchfulness,  and  by 
humble  prayer ;  so  that  we  may  say  with  the 
apostle,  "  I  can  do  all  things  through  Christ  which 
strengtheneth  me." 

"  Weak  as  I  am,  yet,  through  thy  grace, 
I  all  things  can  perform." 


106 


THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION   IX. 

SHE   PERCEIVETH    THAT   HER   MERCHANDISE   IS   GOOD;     HER   CANDLE 
GOETH   NOT   OUT   BY   NIGHT. 

rROM  the  regular  and  constant  indus- 
try for  which  the  excellent  woman  is 
commended,  it  is  evident  that  the 
work  which  she  wrought,  or  which 
[she  superintended,  would  be  of  a  good 
and  valuable  description.  Diligence  and 
'perseverance  in  any  pursuit  give  skill 
and  taste  in  its  performance,  and  enable 
the  wTorker  to  excel  one  who  is  little  inter- 
ested in  his  work.  Such  a  matron  would,  in 
time,  become  known  and  confided  in  for 
promptness  and  regularity,  and  for  durable  and- 
beautiful  workmanship  ;  and  as  Boothroyd  renders 
the  passage,  would  see  "that  her  traffic  is  profit- 
able." The  tapestry,  and  girdles,  and  garments, 
all  carefully  woven  and  beautifully  ornamental, 
would  not  disappoint  the  purchaser,  who  expected 
them,  perhaps,  to  last  a  lifetime  ;  and  the  maker 
would  soon  gain  an  established  reputation  among 


i   9S0BR@HAS!3&1SE 
©  U  f   Si  Y    f]j 


THE    VIGILANT    WOMAN.  109 

those  who  bought,  and  thus  in  every  way  her  mer- 
chandise would  be  good. 

Archbishop  Cranmer  renders  this  verse  :  "  If 
she  perceives  that  her  merchandise  is  good,  her 
candle  goeth  not  out  by  night."  This  might  sig- 
nify, that  if,  on  any  particular  occasion,  this  Jewish 
lady  saw  some  desirable  object  of  purchase,  she 
and  her  maidens  would  work  long  and  diligently, 
even  till  night  was  far  advanced,  in  order  to  procure 
it  in  exchange  for  her  manufactures.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  however,  it  is  no  uncommon  thing,  either  in 
our  own  or  other  lands,  for  those  engaged  in  manu- 
factures to  fulfil  any  large  order  by  occasionally 
spending  even  a  part  of  the  night  in  its  execution. 
In  those  eastern  dwellings  in  which  stuffs  are  made, 
there  is  great  attention  to  business  ;  and  it  some- 
times occurs,  that  not  only  a  busy  group  work  from 
before  the  dawn  till  day  is  over,  but  that  parties  of 
workers  are  employed  through  the  night,  one  party 
rising  to  work  when  the  other  retires  to  repose. 

Dr.  Clarke  suggests  that  this  burning  of  the 
lamp,  however,  implies  rather  a  careful  vigilance 
than  a  perpetual  industry  in  the  Hebrew  mistress. 
He  suggests  that  it  was  probably  burned  on  account 


110  THE   EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

of  the  numerous  banditti  and  lawless  men,  from 
various  wandering  tribes,  who  might  come  suddenly 
and  endanger  the  family  during  the  hours  of  dark- 
ness ;  and  this  caution  to  avert  an  ill,  rather  than 
to  suffer  it,  well  corresponds  with  the  general  char- 
acter given  by  the  description  of  the  poem. 

It  appears  to  have  been  a  very  common  practice 
among  the  ancient  Hebrews,  as  it  is  now  with 
nations  of  the  East,  for  careful  persons  to  burn  a 
lamp  by  night  in  their  dwellings.  Candles  are  not 
burned  in  any  oriental  country,  and  therefore  the 
word  thus  rendered  refers  to  the  lamp,  of  which  we 
have  so  many  notices  in  Scripture.  Even  as  early 
as  the  time  of  Abraham  we  find  a  "  burning  lamp" 
mentioned,  which  appeared  to  him  as  a  revelation 
from  God.  Gideon,  when  he  led  out  his  men 
against  the  host  of  Midian,  bade  them  take  their 
lamps  in  their  pitchers  ;  and  from  these  early 
records  of  patriarchal  times,  even  to  the  days  of 
those  whose  pens  concluded  the  pages  of  Holy  Writ, 
we  find  the  lamp  and  the  oil  continually  referred 
to.  Lamps  were  used  in  the  tabernacle,  and  at 
marriage  festivals  were  hung  around  the  room,  and 
cast   down    their  light  from    above.      Herodotus 


THE    VIGILANT    WOMAN.  Ill 

describes  the  lamps  of  the  ancient  Egyptians  as 
"  small  vases,  filled  with  salt  and  olive  oil,  in  which 
the  wick  floated  and  burned  during  the  whole 
night ;"  and  as  this  description  of  the  lamp  exactly 
accords  with  the  eastern  lamp  of  modern  usage,  it 
seems  probable  that  it  was  also  a  common  form  of 
the  Jewish  lamp.  Many  lamps,  too,  appear,  like 
that  of  our  engraving,  to  have  had  a  small  handle, 
for  the  convenience  of  removing  them  from  place 
to  place.  Vegetable  oil  of  some  kind,  and  most 
probably  exclusively  olive  oil,  was  burned  by  the 
Hebrews.  Thus  we  find  Moses  commanding  the 
Israelites  to  prepare  the  lamp  for  the  tabernacle, 
which  was  to  burn  from  evening  to  morning  before 
the  Lord  :  "  Thou  shalt  command  the  children  of 
Israel,  that  they  bring  thee  pure  oil  olive  beaten  for 
the  light,  to  cause  the  lamp  to  burn  always."  The 
wicks  of  the  lamps  were  made  of  the  coarser  fibres 
of  flax  ;  and  the  Rabbins  record,  that  the  old  linen 
garments  of  the  priests  were  unravelled,  to  furnish 
those  of  the  sacred  lamps  in  the  tabernacle. 

The  general  use  of  the  lamp  naturally  made  it  a 
frequent   subject  of    metaphor   and   simile  among 
ancient  writers.     Thus  the  wise  man  says,  "  The 
8 


112  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

light  of  the  righteous  rejoiceth ;  but  the  lamp  of 
the  wicked  shall  be  put  out ;"  and  again,  the  sud- 
den extinction  of  the  lamp  served  as  a  figure  to 
express  the  wrath  of  God  against  him  who  cursed 
father  or  mother  ;  for  "  his  lamp  shall  be  put  out 
in  obscure  darkness."  Many  wTriters  think  that  the 
expression  "  outer  darkness,"  often  used  in  Scrip- 
ture, refers  to  the  contrast  of  the  outward  darkness 
of  night,  when  compared  with  that  of  the  chamber 
in  which  it  was  so  customary  for  the  light  to  be 
burning.  Our  Saviour,  addressing  those  who  were 
accustomed  to  the  highly  poetic  imagery  of  the 
east,  spoke  of  the  professor  of  piety  under  the 
figure  of  a  lamp  ;  and  in  the  well-known  and  beau- 
tiful parable  of  the  wise  and  foolish  virgins,  showed 
the  danger  of  a  careless  and  unwatchful  profession 
of  religion,  commanding  his  followers  to  have  their 
lights  always  burning. 

In  all  ages,  the  lamp  beaming  from  the  chamber 
window  on  the  dimness  and  gloom  of  the  outward 
world,  has  awakened  pleasurable  and  poetic  associ- 
ations in  the  mind  of  the  traveller  ;  and  whether 
we  are  attracted  by  the  small  light  of  a  cottage 
candle,  seen  from  afar,  or  the  still  fainter  lustre  of 


THE    VIGILANT    WOMAN.  113 

an  eastern  lamp,  yet  our  minds  form  some  picture 
of  the  home  within.  The  writer  of  the  book  of 
Proverbs,  whose  eye  might  rest  on  such  a  lamp, 
wTould  imagine  a  home  of  industrious  application. 
To  him  it  would  speak  of  care  and  vigilance  ;  of  the 
mistress  and  maidens  gathered  round  it  at  their 
work  ;  of  children  striving  to  lend  a  helping  hand  ; 
and  of  a  domestic  scene  of  cheerful  employment. 
To  all  of  us  such  a  lamp  might  seem  like  the  hope 
which  burns  in  the  breast  of  one  who  loves  and 
fears  God.  Now,  perhaps,  it  burns  feebly  ;  some 
passing  object  dims  its  brightness,  and  suggests  the 
idea  of  the  worldly  anxiety,  or  the  sinful  infirmity, 
which  shadows  that  hope  in  the  human  bosom. 
Again,  it  rises  into  a  bright  and  steady  flame, 
cheering  and  gladdening  all  around  it ;  and  so  the 
Christian's  hope,  soaring  above  these  passing 
shadows,  burns  with  its  holy  and  life-giving  lustre, 
shining  brighter  and  brighter,  till  that  perfect  day 
of  pure  and  unshadowed  light.  Perhaps  it  was 
after  wandering  in  some  lonely  spot  in  the  dimness 
of  night,  that  David  came  upon  some  household 
lamp,  and  exclaimed,  as  it  guided  him  onwards, 
"  Thy  word  is  a  lamp  unto  my  feet,  and  a  light 


114  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

unto  my  path  ;"  and  while  he  blessed  God  for  his 
holy  word,  added,  "  Thou  shalt  guide  me  with  thy 
counsel,  and  afterwards  receive  me  to  glory."  Our 
blessed  Saviour  said  to  his  disciples,  "Ye  are  the 
light  of  the  world,"  and  bade  them,  and  us,  for 
whom  also  his  blessed  words  were  spoken  and  after- 
wards written,  so  to  let  our  light  shine  before  men, 
that  they,  seeing  our  good  works,  might  glorify  our 
Father  which  is  in  heaven. 

The  dearest  boon  from  Heaven  above 

Is  bliss  which  brightly  hallows  home ; 
'T  is  sunlight  to  the  world  of  love, 

And  life's  pure  wine,  without  its  foam. 
There  is  a  sympathy  of  heart, 

Which  consecrates  the  social  shrine, 
Robs  grief  of  gloom,  and  doth  impart 

A  joy  to  gladness  all  divine. 

Let  others  seek  in  wealth  or  fame 

A  splendid  path  whereon  to  tread ; 
I  'd  rather  wear  a  lowlier  name, 

With  love's  enchantments  round  it  shed. 
Fame 's  but  a  light  to  gild  the  grave, 

And  wealth  can  never  calm  the  breast ; 
But  Love,  a  halcyon  on  life 's  wave, 

Hatlr  power  to  soothe  its  strifes  to  rest. 


THE    INDUSTRIOUS    WOMAN. 


117 


SECTION   X. 


BHE   LAYETH   HER    HANDS   TO   THE   SPINDLE,    AND   HER   HANDS   HOLD 
THE   DISTAFF. 

AD  not  the  sacred  writer  further 
enlarged  upon  the  character  of  this 
woman,  had  this  single  praise  been 
uttered  of  her,  it  would,  to  those 
for  whom  it  was  immediately  intend- 
ed, be  of  itself  a  high  commendation. 
The  Rabbins  record  an  old  saying  of  the 
Hebrews,  that  there  is  no  wisdom  in  a 
woman  but  in  the  distaff ;  implying,  as 
jdo  the  words  of  the  text,  that  a  woman's 
great  praise  is  her  industry.  The  Greeks 
and  Romans  would  have  accorded  fully  with  the 
implied  sentiment.  When  a  Roman  lady  became  a 
bride,  she  received  many  a  hint,  from  the  marriage 
ceremony,  that  she  was  about  to  enter  on  active 
domestic  employment ;  and  again  and  again  the 
word  thalassio  resounded  on  her  ear.  This  word, 
8* 


118  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

which  signified  the  vessel  in  which  were  kept  the 
materials  for  spinning,  and  the  work  already  spun, 
reminded  her,  not  only  of  the  spindle  and  the 
distaff,  to  which  it  might  directly  refer,  but  was 
also  significant  of  the  various  household  occupations 
in  which  the  women  of  ancient  days  felt  it  their 
duty  and  their  honor  to  excel. 

"In  those  old  times, 
There  was  far  less  of  gadding,  and  far  more 
Of  home-born,  heart-felt  comfort,  rooted  strong 
In  industry,  ani  bearing  such  rare  fruit 
As  wealth  might  never  purchase." 

It  was  not  until  the  more  degenerate  days  of 
Rome,  when  luxury  had  supplanted  the  habits  of 
the  older  state  of  society,  that  spinning  and  weaving 
were  left  to  the  slave.  In  earlier  times,  the  bride 
went  to  her  new  home  amid  the  throng  of  rejoicing 
maidens  ;  and  the  young  attendants  carried  in  their 
hands  the  distaff  and  the  spindle,  with  the  gay 
colored  wools  hanging  about  them  ;  — to  all  it  spoke 
the  same  lesson, —  the  lesson  so  often  inculcated  by 
the  Roman  writers, —  that  a  woman  should  resemble 


THE    INDUSTRIOUS    WOMAN.  119 

the  bee  for  industry,  and  imitate  Minerva,  whose 
wisdom  was  so  truly  womanly  in  its  direction,  that 
she  was  said  to  he  the  first  who  ever  wrought  a 
web. 

It  was  the  pride  of  Augustus  Caesar,  that  his 
imperial  robes,  his  fringed  tunic,  and  costly  girdle, 
were  wrought  in  his  household,  by  the  hands  of  his 
wife,  his  sister,  his  daughter,  and  his  grand- 
daughters. So,  too,  Alexander  the  Great,  when 
advising  the  mother  of  Darius  to  teach  her  nieces 
to  imitate  the  Grecian  ladies  in  spinning  wool, 
showed  her  the  garments  which  he  wore,  and  told 
her  they  were  made  by  his  sisters.  The  virtuous 
Lucretia  worked  with  her  maidens  at  the  spinning- 
wheel  ;  and  Tanaquil,  the  wife  of  Tarquin,  wrought 
woollen  robes  so  well,  that  long  after  her  death,  her 
spinning  implements,  together  with  a  robe  of  her 
manufacture,  were  hung  up  in  the  Temple  of 
Fortune  ;  a  constant  monument  of  her  taste  and 
skill,  and  an  intimation  to  Koman  maids  and 
matrons  that  they,  too,  should  lay  their  hands  tc 
the  spindle,  and  their  hands  should  hold  the  distaff 

The  Jewish  Scriptures  so  frequently  refer  to  the 


120  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

industry  of  women  in  occupations  of  this  kind,  that 
one  can  easily  imagine  the  matron 

"  At  her  wheel, 
Spinning  amain,  as  if  to  overtake 
The  never-halting  time  ;  or,  in  her  turn, 
Teaching  some  novice  of  the  sisterhood 
Her  skill  in  this  or  other  household  work." 

The  ancient  spindle  or  spinning-wheel  was  held 
by  the  right  hand,  and  turned  round,  while  the 
distaff  or  staff  around  which  the  wool  was  rolled 
was  held  in  the  bend  of  the  left  arm,  and  the  thread 
drawn  over  the  fingers  of  the  left  hand,  so  that 
both  hands  were  employed. 

The  spindle  and  the  distaff  are  the  most  ancient 
form  of  the  spinning  apparatus,  and,  in  an  improved 
condition,  were  long  used  even  in  our  own  country  ; 
hence  the  word  spinster  ;  and  the  English  maiden 
or  mother  might  often  be  seen  sitting  at  her  wheel 

"  In  summer,  ere  the  mower  was  ahroad 
Among  the  dewy  grass  —  in  early  spring, 
Ere  the  last  star  had  vanished." 

But  time  has  brought  its  wondrous  improvements 
and  great  changes,  and  the  well-constructed  spin- 


THE    INDUSTRIOUS    WOMAN.  121 

ning  machinery  of  modern  days  has  banished  from 
our  cottage-doors  the  busy  hum  of  the  wheel.  The 
cottager  who  once  turned  it  gayly  round  has  now 
to  change  her  mode  of  industry,  and  has  only  to 
make  up  with  her  needle,  into  garments,  the  fabric 
which  she  would  once  have  manufactured  for  herself. 
But,  besides  the  actual  spinning  or  weaving  of 
the  wool  and  flax,  the  preparation  of  these  sub- 
stances gave  much  employment  to  the  Jewish 
household.  The  flax  required  drying  and  preparing 
for  use.  The  wool,  after  being  combed  and  picked 
and  carded,  was  put  up  in  round  balls,  ready  for 
the  spindle.  It  was  sometimes  left  for  use  with  the 
natural  moisture  which  fresh  cut  wool  always  yields, 
and  which  reminds  us  of  the  wool  of  Gideon's  fleeces, 
out  of  which,  in  the  Syrian  climate,  he  could  wring 
dew,  "  even  a  bowl  full  of  water."  Wool  in  this 
state  was  called  plump-Avool ;  but  when  the  manu- 
facturers were  about  to  make  some  of  those  brilliant 
garments,  whose  tints  no  modern  skill  can  furnish, 
the  wool  had  to  be  subjected  to  the  various  processes 
of  dyeing.  In  this  case  it  was  usual  to  anoint  the 
wool  with  wine,  or  with  some  unctuous  substance, 
preparatory  to  plunging  it  into  the  dye. 


122  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    XI. 

8HE  STRETCHETH  OUT  HER   HAND   TO  THE  POOR ;    YEA,  SHE  REACHETn 
FORTH   HER    HANDS   TO    THE    NEEDY. 

VERY  reader  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
1  must  see  how  careful  the  great  Jeho- 
vah has  been,  both  under  the  old 
and  new  dispensation,  to  recommend 
to  the  care  of  the  rich  the  wants  of 
their  poorer  brethren.  The  law  of  Moses 
abounded  in  humane  institutions  respect- 
ing the  poor,  and  these  would  be  familiar 
to  the  Jewish  woman.  Though  her  Bible 
had  not  the  Gospels,  with  their  illustrations 
of  the  living  and  dying  love  of  the  Redeemer ; 
though  the  sacred  volume  of  the  ancient  Hebrew 
told  not  of  the  self-denying  zeal  of  St.  Paul,  or 
other  holy  men  of  old,  who  lived  and  labored  and 
suffered  for  others  ;  though  it  had  not  the  gentle 
and  affectionate  tenderness  of  the  lovely  and  beloved 
disciple, — yet  its  law  made  provision  for  kindness 
and  humanity  ;  and  the  poor  and  the  destitute,  the 
fatherless  and  the  widow,  were  ever  described  as 


OTRITOHETH  ©«7  >]2B  HAND  7©  VMS 

'72  5    YSA,    SKI    R1A6MITH    r©*T«i 

HIS    HA79B8  "7©  7H1  MEIPY. 


THE    HUMANE    WOMAN.  125 

the  peculiar  objects  of  God's  love  and  compassion, 
and  were  recommended  to  the  care  of  those  to  whom 
God  had  given  wealth.  "  Blessed  is  he  that  con- 
sidered the  poor  :  the  Lord  will  deliver  him  in  time 
of  trouble,"  had  been  sung  by  the  Psalmist;  and 
still  the  words  resounded  in  the  tabernacle  of  the 
righteous,  and  still  were  met  by  answering  feelings 
in  the  hearts  of  those  who  loved  and  feared  Israel's 
God.  It  was  in  the  exact  spirit  of  the  divine  law 
that  this  woman  acted.  Moses  had  said,  "  The 
poor  shall  never  cease  out  of  the  land  ;  therefore  I 
command  thee,  saying,  Thou  shalt  open  thine  hand 
wide  unto  thy  brother,  to  thy  poor,  and  to  thy  needy, 
in  thy  land." 

There  is  something  very  expressive  in  the  figure 
of  the  text:  "  She  stretcheth  out  her  hand  to  the 
poor ;  yea,  she  reacheth  forth  her  hands  to  the 
needy."  It  would  seem  to  imply  an  attention  to 
the  wants  of  the  poor,  not  forced  upon  her  by 
immediate  neighborhood.  She  waited  not  for  the 
poor  man  to  come  to  her  door,  but  she  went  out  to 
look  for  him.  She  did  not  deal  out  her  bounty 
grudgingly,  and  by  slow  degrees,  but  gave  with 
bounteous  hands,  and  anticipated  the  duty  taught 


126  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

afterwards :  "Freely  ye  have  received,  freely  give." 
She  might  have  been  seen,  like  Dorcas,  making 
clothing  for  the  poor,  and  distributing  it  with  cheer- 
ful and  willing  kindness.  She  knew  well  that  God 
loveth  a  cheerful  giver.  She  was  described  as  a 
woman  "  who  feared  the  Lord,"  and  his  commands 
were  her  standard  of  duty.  She  would  feel  that  the 
destitute  ought  to  have  a  portion  in  all  riches,  so 
that  God's  blessing  might  rest  on  the  wealth  which 
she  had  gained.  Such  a  woman  could  appreciate 
the  kind  and  considerate  command  of  her  holy  law, 
so  suited  to  the  agricultural  habits  of  the  people  of 
a  rich  and  fertile  land  :  "  When  thou  cuttest  down 
thine  harvest  in  thy  field,  and  hast  forgot  a  sheaf  in 
the  field,  thou  shalt  not  go  again  to  fetch  it ;  it 
shall  be  for  the  stranger,  for  the  fatherless,  and  for 
the  widow  ;  that  the  Lord  thy  God  may  bless  thee 
in  all  the  works  of  thine  hands.  When  thou  beatest 
thine  olive-tree,  thou  shalt  not  go  over  the  boughs 
again ;  it  shall  be  for  the  stranger,  for  the  fatherless, 
and  for  the  widow.  When  thou  gatherest  the  grapes 
of  thy  vineyard,  thou  shalt  not  glean  it  afterwards; 
it  shall  be  for  the  stranger,  for  the  fatherless,  and 
for  the  widow."     And,  whether  it  were  the  glean- 


THE    HUMANE    WOMAN.  127 

ings  of  her  harvest  field,  or  the  wool  of  her  flock,  it 
was  given  with  gladness.  The  poor  who  were  near 
her  rejoiced  in  her  bounty,  and  the  poor  afar  off 
were  not  forgotten.  Even  so  may  we  see  the  rip- 
plings  of  the  waters  around  the  pebble  which  is  cast 
into  the  stream ;  and  the  ridges  of  water  are  fuller 
and  larger  nearest  to  the  stone,  and  though  they 
lessen  as  they  recede,  yet  they  form  widening  circles 
still,  until  they  enclose  the  whole  lake ;  just  so  were 
the  deeds  of  love  wrought  by  this  woman,  fullest  in 
the  charities  of  home,  yet  widening  ever,  until  they 
encompassed  the  whole  world  in  their  embrace. 

Dr.  Adam  Clarke  considers  the  expression 
"needy"  as  applying  especially  to  the  afflicted 
poor.  The  poor  whom  sickness  prevented  from 
labor ;  the  aged  man,  whose  limbs  refused  to  bear 
the  weight  of  toil ;  the  little  child,  too  young  to 
help  himself ;  or  the  houseless  stranger,  who  came 
to  the  gate  of  the  Israelitish  city  to  ask  for  succor ; 
the  latter  had  been  especially  commended  to  the 
pity  of  the  ancient  Hebrew:  "Love  ye  therefore  the 
stranger,"  said  the  Lord  to  his  chosen  people  ;  "for 
ye  were  strangers  in  the  land  of  Egypt."  And  he 
whom  adverse  circumstances  had  brought  low  was 
9 


128  THE    EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

cared  for  in  the  humane  precepts  of  the  law.  "  If 
thy  brother  be  waxen  poor,  and  fallen  in  decay  with 
thee,  then  thou  shalt  relieve  him ;  yea,  though  he 
be  a  stranger  or  a  sojourner  ;  that  he  may  live  with 
thee.' 

If  we  find  it  commanded  as  a  duty  and  named  as 
a  praise,  of  the  Hebrew  woman,  that  she  reached 
forth  her  hands  to  the  poor  and  needy,  how  much 
more  should  this  kindness  to  the  indigent  be  expected 
of  women  reared  in  a  country  in  which  the  gentle 
and  loving  spirit  of  the  Gospel  is  fully  known  !  The 
ancient  duty  of  remembering  the  poor,  so  far  from 
being  abrogated  by  the  New  Testament,  is  enforced 
by  more  numerous  and  direct  commands,  and  by  the 
living  example  of  our  blessed  Saviour,  who  "  went 
about  doing  good." 

One  thing  which  must  ever  endear  to  the  Chris- 
tian his  poorer  brethren  is  the  remembrance  that 
Jesus  Christ  himself  was  the  member  of  a  poor 
family.  The  disciple  of  the  Lord  who  had  not 
where  to  lay  his  head,  and  who  was  supplied  by  the 
kind  women  who  ministered  to  him,  should  feel  a 
sincere  pity  and  regard  for  the  poor ;  for  verily  the 
Lord  of  glory  took  not  upon  him  the  nature  of  an 


THE    HUMANE    WOMAN.  129 

angel ;  he  came  not  with  wealth  or  power,  but 
made  himself  of  no  reputation,  and  for  more  than 
thirty  years  endured  poverty  and  privation,  that  we 
might  have  everlasting  happiness, — that  to  the  poor 
the  Gospel  might  be  preached,  and  that  they  might 
be  made  "  rich  in  faith,  and  heirs  of  the  kingdom." 
In  all  the  solemn  and  affectionate  appeals  made  in 
God's  holy  word  in  behalf  of  the  poor,  there  is  not 
one  which  comes  home  more  fully  than  this  to  the 
heart  of  God's  children  :  "  For  ye  know  the  grace 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that,  though  he  was  rich, 
yet  for  your  sakes  he  became  poor,  that  ye  through 
his  poverty  might  be  rich."  0,  if  we  could  ever 
remember  how  short  our  time  is  for  doing  good, — 
that  our  sun  may  go  down  suddenly,  while  it  is  yet 
day  ;  that  if  even  the  threescore  years  and  ten  of 
this  mortal  life  should  be  allotted  to  us,  it  will  be  too 
short  for  half  our  projects, — surely  we  should  hasten 
to-day  to  labor  in  God's  vineyard  ;  making  sacrifices 
of  time,  and  talents,  and  property,  for  the  poor  and 
needy  of  God's  heritage,  and  laboring  diligently 
ere  the  night  cometh,  when  no  man  can  work. 

Nor  must  it  be  forgotten   that   on  a  Christian 
devolves  the  duty,  not  only  of  doing  good  to  the 


130  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

body,  but  to  the  soul.  Every  one  who  has  himself 
received  the  gift  of  God's  spirit,  —  whose  sins  are 
pardoned  through  the  Redeemer's  grace, — is  bound 
to  study  and  promote  the  eternal  welfare  of  others. 
Woe  be  to  us,  if  our  poorer  brethren  shall  say,  at 
the  day  of  judgment,  "  No  man  cared  for  my  soul." 
If  we  have  the  tongue  of  the  learned,  and  can  give 
good  instruction,  yet  forbear  to  give  it ;  if  we  can 
help  the  ignorant  with  a  word  of  counsel ;  if  we 
can  bestow  upon  him  the  word  of  life,  or  induce 
him  to  join  the  assembly  of  God's  earthly  worship- 
pers on  the  Sabbath  day ;  if  we  can  set  before  him 
a  holy  example  ;  if  we  can  send  the  missionary  to 
the  crowded  alleys  of  our  cities,  or  help  him  to 
traverse  the  wide  waters  to  the  dim  and  dark 
recesses  of  ignorance  or  cruelty, — and  yet  sloth,  or 
carelessness,  or  self-indulgence,  or  parsimony,  lead 
us  to  inertness, — then  we  are  robbing  those  whom 
God  has  given  into  our  care,  and  God  will  require 
their  souls  at  our  hands.  But  if  we  stretch  out  our 
hands  to  the  needy,  then  may  we  hope  for  God's 
promised  blessing,  and  our  own  spiritual  wants  will 
be  supplied  while  we  are  aiding  others. 

There  is  also  a  peculiar  feature  in  love  to  the 


THE    HUMANE    WOMAN.  131 

poor,  which  is  impressed  on  the  doctrines  of  the 
New  Testament  with  greater  distinctness  than  on 
those  of  the  Old.  Besides  the  general  commands  to 
love  our  poorer  neighbor,  we  are  especially  "to  do 
good  to  them  who  are  of  the  household  of  faith." 
So  much  is  this  love  to  the  disciples  of  Christ  incul- 
cated in  the  writings  of  the  evangelists  and  apostles, 
that  we  are  told  we  ought  to  "  lay  down  our  lives 
for  the  brethren."  It  is  even  made  a  test  of  our 
love  to  God.  "  Whoso  hath  this  world's  good," 
saith  St.  John,  "and  seeth  his  brother  have  need, 
and  shutteth  up  his  bowels  of  compassion  from  him, 
how  dwelleth  the  love  of  God  in  him  1 "  The  con- 
tributions for  the  poor  saints  were  not  forgotten  by 
the  apostle  Paul  and  the  early  Christians ;  and 
while  it  is  the  duty  of  Christians  to  do  good  to  the 
bodies  and  to  the  souls  of  all,  to  stretch  out  the 
willing  hand  to  the  poor  and  needy,  the  poor  of 
God's  adopted  family  should  be  the  especial  objects 
of  their  love  and  care. 

From  Christ,  the  Lord,  shall  they  obtain 
Like  sympathy  and  love  again. 
9* 


132  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION  XII. 

EHE  IS   NOT   AFRAID   OF   THE   SNOW  FOE   HER   HOUSEHOLD ;    FOR   ALL 
HER   HOUSEHOLD   ARE   CLOTHED   WITH   SCARLET. 

[0  accustomed  are  we  to  hear  of  the 
i  serene  skies  and  genial  warmth  of 
"the  climate  of  Palestine,  that  we  are, 
in  our  thoughts,  apt  to  invest  that 
Interesting  land  with  a  perpetual  sun- 
' shine.  The  flowery  heights  of  the 
fragrant  Carmel ;  the  magnificent  and 
enduring  vegetation  of  Lebanon ;  the 
smiling  plains  of  the  still  lovely  and 
verdant  Sharon ;  the  grapes  of  Eshcol, — 
these  are  the  features  of  the  landscape  most 
familiar  to  our  mind.  Although  the  cold  of  winter 
is  not  so  severe  as  in  some  other  parts  of  Syria, 
still  it  is  scarcely  less  than  that  experienced  in  our 
own  country.  The  autumnal  shower  is  the  early 
rain,  for  which  the  "husbandman  long  waited," 
that  he  might  sow  his  seed  ;  and  in  December, 
which  is  the  first  winter  month,  the  rain  falls  in 
torrents,  and  the  snow  covers  the  plains  occasion- 


_;.-r       35  M©T  AFBAIB  ©f  -TV,!.  s,?}0\7 
■    f  ©  B    HIS   HQUSEHOLEij   f  ©  : 
.  &L!L    MSB    M©<U)®SM©L©   <&BI   ©C©>THEB 
i3^  WDTM    8SABU?. 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  135 

ally,  and  lies  on  the  elevated  mountains  lung  after 
spring  has  made  considerable  advance  ;  while  hoar- 
frost Scatters  its  diamonds,  or  a  mist,  like  that  of 
our  northern  climates,  obscures  the  face  of  nature. 
Owing  to  the  great  inequalities  of  surface  in  the 
Holy  Land,  there  are  some  sheltered  and  favored 
spots  which  are  free  from  the  cold  of  winter.  Here 
the  season  is  soft  and  mild,  snow  is  seldom  seen  on 
the  plains,  and  the  orange-tree  and  the  citron  and 
the  goodly  palm  contrast  with  the  white  summits 
and  glittering  icicles  of  Lebanon.  On  the  moun- 
tains the  snow  is  peculiarly  deep  from  December, 
and  scarcely  decreases  before  the  month  of  July. 
•Dr.  E.  D.  Clarke,  speaking  of  one  of  the  hills 
which  forms  a  part  of  the  majestic  Lebanon,  says  : 
"The  snow  entirely  covers  the  upper  part  of  it; 
not  lying  in  patches,  as  I  have  seen  it,  during 
summer,  upon  the  tops  of  very  elevated  mountains, — ■ 
for  instance,  that  of  Nevis  in  Scotland  ;  but  invest- 
ing all  the  higher  part  with  that  perfect  white  and 
smooth  velvet-like  appearance  which  snow  only 
exhibits  when  it  is  very  deep  ;  a  striking  spectacle 
in  such  a  climate,  where  the  beholder,  seeking  pro- 


136  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

tection  from  a  burning  sun,  almost  considers  the 
firmament  to  be  on  fire." 

We  have  various  other  instances  in  Scripture, 
besides  that  quoted  at  the  head  of  the  chapter,  of 
the  cold  and  snow  of  Palestine.  The  psalmist  of 
Israel  sung  of  the  fleeces  which  the  Creator  "giveth 
like  wool,"  and  prayed  that  he  might  be  purified, 
and  made  "  whiter  than  snow."  We  infer  the  cold 
from  the  statement  of  the  prophet  Jeremiah,  when 
he  described  Jehoiakim,  king  of  Judah,  as  sitting 
with  his  nobles  around  the  hearth,  and  daringly 
cutting  with  his  penknife,  and  casting  into  the  fire, 
the  scroll  which  contained  the  denunciations  of  the 
Almighty.  So  again,  in  that  sad  hour,  when  the 
affectionate  but  frail  apostle  denied  the  Master 
whom  he  loved,  we  read  that  they  had  kindled  a 
fire  in  the  midst  of  the  hall,  and  that  Peter  and 
others  sat  down  together  by  it,  "  for  it  was  cold." 

The  writer  of  the  "  Pictorial  Palestine,"  describ- 
ing the  severe  weather  of  January,  says:  "  Major 
Skinner,  who  states  that  he  traversed  this  country 
in  a  season  unusually  severe,  speaks  much  of  snow 
and  cold.  He  mentions  a  village  under  Mount 
Carmel,  in  which  many  houses  had  been  destroyed 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  137 

by  the  great  quantities  of  snow  which  had  fallen. 
He  spent  a  night  in  that  village,  and  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  twenty-eighth  found  the  court-yard  full 
of  snow,  which  had  fallen  during  the  night.  Snow 
was  then  resting  on  the  ridge  of  Mount  Carmel. 
Penetrating  to  the  interior  of  the  country,  the 
same  traveller  reached  Nazareth  on  the  thirtieth. 
The  heights  around  the  town,  and  many  of  the 
houses,  were  covered  with  snow,  large  heaps  of 
which  were  piled  up  in  the  court-yard  of  the  con- 
vent. Many  of  the  smaller  houses  had  been 
destroyed  by  it ;  and  the  next  day  he  found  that 
the  deep  snow  in  the  streets  rendered  it  impossible 
to  quit  the  city,  and  difficult  to  move  about  in  it. 
A  thaw  had,  however,  commenced.  The  snow  falls 
thick,  and  lies  long  on  the  mountains  and  high  and 
intervening  plains  and  valleys  of  Jebel  Haouran, 
which  may  be  said  to  bound  eastward  the  country 
beyond  Jordan.  Madox  found  it  so  at  the  end  of 
January.  The  same  traveller,  on  the  thirteenth, 
found  Damascus  covered  with  snow,  as  well  as  the 
mountains  and  plains  round  it." 

Most  commentators  think  that  the  Hebrew  word 
rendered  "  scarlet"  would  be  more  correctly  trans- 


138  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

lated  by  the  marginal  reading,  "  double  garments. 
It  is  thus  rendered  by  Boothroyd  in  his  version  of 
Scripture,  and  the  Septuagint  and  Arabic  versions 
give  it  thus.  The  twice  dyeing,  which  formed  part 
of  the  process  used  in  obtaining  the  brilliant  scarlet 
of  the  East,  caused  this  color  to  be  expressed  in  the 
original  language  by  the  verb  to  redouble,  and 
thus  leaves  the  rendering  in  some  measure  doubt- 
ful. Dr.  Adam  Clarke  states,  in  his  commentary, 
that  his  old  manuscript  Bible  renders  this  part  of 
the  passage  "  ben  clothed  with  double  ;"  and  adds 
that  Coverdale,  with  equal  propriety,  translates  it, 
"  For  all  hir  household  folkes  are  duble  clothed." 
Whether  we  regard  this  double  clothing  as  relating 
to  an  additional  number  of  garments,  put  on  during 
the  winter  season, —  or  whether  we  consider  it  as 
relating  to  a  double  stock  of  clothes,  suitable  for 
the  winter,  as  well  as  the  summer, —  it  still  marks 
the  care  of  her  household  shown  by  the  mistress 
and  the  mother. 

There  are,  however,  some  commentators  who 
consider  scarlet  as  the  right  rendering  of  the  word 
from  the  original.  Dr.  Gill  remarks,  that  if  the 
word  here  used  had  been  designed  to  be  "  double," 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  139 

it  would  have  been  in  the  dual  number  ;  and  as  this 
is  not  the  case,  he  considers  that  in  this,  and  simi- 
lar instances,  it  is  used  for  the  scarlet  color.  He 
adds  that  both  the  Targum  and  Aben  Ezra  thus 
interpret  it. 

Supposing  the  word  scarlet  to  be  the  correct 
translation  in  this  passage,  it  would  refer  to  the 
clothing  provided  by  the  Jewish  matron  for  her 
husband  and  children  only,  and  would  not  include 
the  dress  of  her  servants.  Scarlet  was  a  color 
much  esteemed  in  the  East,  and  the  Jewish  nobles 
and  courtiers  were  accustomed,  on  state  occasions 
and  festivals,  to  wear  robes  of  this  brilliant  dye. 
In  that  exquisitely  touching  lament,  uttered  by 
David  over  the  fallen  king,  he  exclaims,  "  Ye 
daughters  of  Israel,  weep  over  Saul,  who  clothed 
you  in  scarlet,  with  other  delights, —  who  put  on 
ornaments  of  gold  upon  your  apparel."  So,  too, 
Belshazzar  was  decked  in  the  robe  of  scarlet ; 
and  when  the  prophet  meant  to  contrast  the  wealth 
and  luxury  of  Israel  with  its  deepest  degradation, 
he  said,  "  They  that  were  brought  up  in  scarlet 
embrace  dunghills."  And  now,  in  the  land  endeared 
to  us  by  holiest  associations,  the  bright  coloring  of 


140  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

the  scarlet  robe  still  attracts  the  eye  of  the  traveller, 
in  the  winter  season ;  and  Lamartine  speaks  of  the 
picturesque  scarlet  mantles  of  the  Druses  of  Leba- 
non, and  of  the  brilliant  vests  of  scarlet  velvet 
sometimes  adopted  by  the  Arab  women. 

If  we  keep  to  the  latter  rendering  of  the  word, 
the  passage  would  leave  us  simply  to  infer,  that  as 
the  ordinary  clothing  of  the  family  was  that  of  the 
wealthier  classes,  there  would  not  fail  to  be  a  pro- 
vision of  warm  raiment  prepared  for  the  inclement 
season. 

The  ancient  scarlet  appears  to  have  been  some- 
times a  vegetable  dye,  obtained  from  the  berries  of 
a  tree  common  in  Canaan,  and  at  others  to  have 
been  procured  from  an  insect  resembling  the 
American  cochineal,  though  of  a  less  brilliant  tint. 
This  insect,  which  was  found  chiefly  on  the  leaves 
of  the  evergreen  oak  (ilex  aculeata),  was  called  by 
the  Greeks  and  Romans  coccus,  but  by  the  Arabs 
kermes,  and  from  this  latter  word  we  derive  our 
crimson  and  carmine.  This  scarlet  dye  is  supposed 
to  have  been  common  in  Egypt  before  the  time  of 
Moses,  and  to  have  been  brought  by  the  Israelites 
from  that  land.     It  is  considered  by  most  writers 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  141 

to  be  the  scarlet  named  among  the  colors  of  the 
hangings  of  the  tabernacle,  by  the  cunning  (or 
skilful)  workman  and  embroiderer. 

In  the  national  character  of  the  Hebrews,  we 
can,  through  all  ages,  perceive  the  virtue  of  fore- 
thought, a  characteristic  which  appears  the  more 
striking  if  we  contrast  it  with  the  carelessness  of 
the  future  exhibited  by  our  warm-hearted  neighbors, 
the  Irish,  or  with  the  love  of  mere  present  gratifi- 
cation which  marks  the  people  of  some  continental 
nations.  In  the  long  series  of  cruel  and  oppressive 
acts,  to  which,  in  comparatively  modern  times,  the 
ancient  people  of  God  have  been  subjected,  this 
forethought  has,  in  many  instances,  degenerated 
into  a  spirit  of  covetousness  ;  and  the  love  of  hoard- 
ing has  been  censured  in  the  Jew  by  the  very  men 
whose  rapacious  tyranny  turned  this  characteristic 
virtue  into  a  vice.  But  the  bright  example  of  this 
pious  woman,  as  portrayed  by  the  Hebrew  writer, 
under  the  direct  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of 
God,  is  not  that  of  a  mean  selfishness,  not 

"  That  strict  parsimony 
Which  sternly  hoarded  all  that  could  be  spared 
From  each  day's  need,  out  of  each  day's  least  gain :" 

10 


142  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

Hers  was  an  enlarged  and  bounteous  providence , 
one  which,  while  it  sought  to  guard  against  the  ills, 
and  provided  for  the  comforts,  of  the  coming  days, 
while  it  gathered  for  her  family  enough  and  to 
spare,  yet  could  have  an  open  hand  for  the  poor  and 
needy.  She  acted  on  the  principle  of  the  charge 
given  by  the  wise  man  to  the  sluggard,  when  he 
bade  him  consider  the  ways  of  the  ant,  "  which 
provideth  her  meat  in  the  summer,  and  gathereth 
her  food  in  the  harvest."  She  could  give  liberally 
to  those  who  had  nothing,  while  she  avoided  the 
censure  afterwards  pronounced  by  the  apostle,  "  If 
any  provide  not  for  his  own,  and  specially  for  those 
of  his  own  house,  he  hath  denied  the  faith,  and  is 
worse  than  an  infidel."  We  have  sometimes  need 
to  be  reminded  that  prodigality  is  not  generosity  ; 
that  there  is  a  prudent  care  for  ourselves  and  others, 
which  may  consist  in  economizing  present  provision, 
so  as  to  afford  future  comfort ;  and  which  is,  as  in 
the  beautiful  illustration  of  womanly  virtue  now 
before  us,  the  result  of  a  generous  and  enlarged 
though tfulness,  which  forgets  not  to  consider  the 
poor,  nor  neglects  the  enjoyment  of  present  good. 
Prudence  is  that  necessary  part  of  wisdom,  which, 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  143 

while  it  adapts  its  means  to  the  end,  refers  chiefly 
to  the  prevention  of  ill.  In  looking  to  the  future, 
we  must  see  that  evil  of  one  kind  or  other  waits 
us,  if  not  met  by  a  careful  prudence.  Even  the 
warm  and  pleasant  days  of  Palestine,  its  myrtles 
and  roses,  its  many-tinted  hues  of  sky, —  all  had 
to  yield  to  the  winter's  snows,  and  coldness,  and 
barrenness ;  and  thus  it  is  with  our  life  itself. 
"The  prudent  man  foreseeth  the  evil,  and  hideth 
himself;  but  the  simple  pass  on,  and  are  punished ;" 
and  the  wretched  fate  of  the  imprudent  man,  whose 
want  of  consideration  for  the  future  leads  him  to 
poverty  and  ruin,  is  too  often  before  us  to  be  for- 
gotten. But  there  is  a  worse  evil  to  be  prepared 
for  than  mere  earthly  poverty,  and  cold,  and  want, 
and  suffering.  Death  is  in  itself  an  evil.  Even 
the  apostle  could  say,  when  speaking  of  the  disunion 
of  soul  and  body,  "Not  for  that  we  would  be 
unclothed."  And  if  the  Christian  naturally  shrinks 
from  the  prospect  of  death,  though  his  life  has  been 
a  preparation  for  heaven,  and  he  knows  that  God 
will  be  with  him  in  dying,  0,  how  fearful  must  it 
be  to  him  who  in  life  never  looked  forward  to  his 
dying  hour  !     The  infidel  is  an  imprudent  man,  for 


144  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

he  hideth  himself  not  from  coming  evil,  but  boldly 
defies  the  wintry  hour  of  life.  The  worldly  man  is 
imprudent,  for  he  sends  forward  no  careful  thought 
into  the  long  future  ;  and  though  even  our  ages  are 
but  as  a  few  waves  from  the  great  sea  of  Eternity, 
which  ebb  back  again  into  that  boundless  ocean, 
yet  he  lives  as  if  all  our  interests  belonged  to  Time. 
The  profligate  man,  who  despises  God,  and  loses  in 
the  sense  of  present  gratification  all  consciousness 
of  the  evil  which  lies  beyond,  laments  bitterly,  on 
his  dying  bed,  his  neglect  of  the  duty  of  fore- 
thought. 

Forethought,  however,  must  be  distinguished 
from  foreboding  ;  that  cheerful  calculation  on  future 
events,  and  providing  against  the  vicissitudes  of 
life,  which  are  exemplified  in  the  text,  are  wholly 
different  from  the  dread  of  coming  evil,  the  anxiety 
about  sorrows  which  may  never  happen,  which 
arises  from  a  mistrust  of  the  providence  of  God. 
Some  people  build  castles  in  the  air ;  others  seem 
intent  on  building  dungeons.  The  over  anxious 
mind  is  distrustful,  and  makes  its  owner  miserable, 
when  he  ought  calmly  and  happily  to  wait  on  God, 


THE    THOUGHTFUL    WOMAN.  145 

and  rely  on  his  promises.    To  such  might  be  applied 
the  words  of  the  poet : 

"  Does  each  day  upon  its  wing 
Its  allotted  burden  bring  ? 
Load  it  not  beside  with  sorrow 
Which  belongeth  to  the  morrow. 
Strength  is  promised — strength  is  given 
When  the  heart  by  God  is  riven  : 
But,  foredate  the  day  of  woe, 
And  alone  thou  bear'st  the  blow." 

10* 


146  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION  XIII. 

SHE   MAKETH   HERSELF    COVERINGS   OF   TAPESTRY  J     HER   CLOTHING 
IS    SILK    AND    PURPLE. 

ERSONS  of  wealth,  in  eastern  coun- 
ties, have  ever  been  accustomed  to 
.dress  in  magnificent  clothing,  and  to 
i  furnish  their  dwellings  in  a  sumptu- 
ous and  tasteful  manner.  There  is, 
indeed,  but  little  furniture  in  an  ori- 
ental house.  Couches  and  sofas,  and 
hangings  at  the  doors,  are  almost  the 
only  objects  on  which  skill  can  be  exercised, 
or  which  will  admit  the  display  of  wealth  in 
the  possessor.  In  such  a  condition  of  soci- 
ety, it  was  certainly  the  duty  of  the  wife  of  a  Jew- 
ish magistrate,  both  to  dress  herself,  and  to  array 
her  house,  in  a  style  becoming  the  place  and  time. 
Had  she  done  otherwise,  she  would  have  neglected 
the  duties  of  her  station,  exposed  her  husband  to 
censure,  and  herself  have  borne  the  reputation  of  a 
careless  housewife.  While  to  be  clothed  in  silk 
and  purple  would  be  no  praise  of  the  modern  female, 


KEITH     HE1RS1ILP 
IVCRlWoS    ©?    T&PSSITIBYj 
HER    .SLQITHOM®    0§    §0LK    at 
P  IF  R  f»  L  K . 


THE    TASTEFUL    WOMAN.  149 

in  her  it  was  significant  of  that  sense  of  propriety 
which,  in  all  ages,  especially  becomes  the  feminine 
character.  The  same  duty  of  making  home  com- 
fortable, of  providing  suitable  furniture  and  clothing 
for  the  family,  and  of  dressing  according  to  her 
station,  is  practised  by  the  excellent  woman  of 
modern  times ;  and  she  who  is  not  attired  with  a 
woman's  neatness,  and  is  indifferent  even  to  the 
appearance  of  her  house  and  family,  has  no  claim 
to  the  reputation  of  a  good  wife,  nor  can  she  expect 
that  her  children  will  rise  up  and  call  her  blessed. 

The  coverings  of  tapestry  named  in  this  passage 
refer  probably  to  those  embroidered  quilted  cover- 
lets, used  in  all  parts  of  Asia,  for  the  divan  or  sofa. 
They  might,  however,  signify  carpets  for  her  guests 
to  sit  upon ;  or  those  richly- worked  curtains  often 
hung  at  the  oriental  doorway,  to  keep  the  warm 
rays  of  the  sun  from  entering  the  apartment ;  and 
which,  separating  the  room  from  the  beautiful 
garden  into  which  it  opens,  yet  admit  the  soft 
wind,  laden  with  odors  from  shrubs  and  flowers. 
It  seems  most  likely  that  these  coverings  of  tapestry 
were  worked  with  the  needle,  for  although,  in  very 
early  days,  the  Greeks  and  Romans  used  the  loom 


150  THE    EXCELLENT   WOMAN. 

in  embroidering  their  tapestries,  yet  the  practice  of 
working  by  the  needle  was  not  only  earlier,  but  was 
continued  long  after  the  introduction  of  the  loom, 
and,  indeed,  to  comparatively  modern  times.  The 
Hebrews  derived  their  skill  in  this  art  from  the 
Egyptians,  and  among  this  people  either  the  loom 
or  the  hand  was  employed  in  this  kind  of  manufac- 
ture. Until  within  the  last  few  centuries,  much 
female  skill  and  ingenuity  have  been  bestowed  on 
the  working  of  tapestry,  of  which  the  celebrated 
Bayeux  tapestry  is  a  well  known  instance.  This 
piece  of  needle-work,  wrought  either  by  the  hand 
of  Matilda,  the  wife  of  the  Norman  Conqueror,  or 
worked  by  her  maidens,  under  her  direction,  is  a 
standing  monument  of  feminine  perseverance.  It 
is  twenty  inches  wide,  and  two  hundred  and  four- 
teen long.  It  is  worked  in  woollen  threads,  and 
resembles  a  large  sampler ;  portraying,  in  figures 
somewhat  uncouth,  the  various  events  connected 
with  the  Norman  conquest. 

The  curtains  of  the  Jewish  tabernacle,  described 
in  the  book  of  Exodus,  "  made  of  fine  twined  linen, 
and  blue,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,"  are  generally 
supposed   to  have  been  made  of  needle-work,  in 


THE    TASTEFUL    WOMAN.  151 

which  the  Jewish  women  are  known  to  have 
excelled.  Some  of  these  curtains  had  precious 
stones  and  wires  of  gold  worked  in  among  the 
threads,  as  we  see  in  the  "  clothes  of  service,"  and 
' '  holy  garments,"  described  by  Moses.  "And 
they  did  beat  the  gold  into  thin  plates,  and  cut  it 
into  wires,  to  work  it  in  the  blue,  and  in  the  purple, 
and  in  the  scarlet,  and  in  the  fine  linen,  with 
cunning  work."  That  pictures  describing  various 
scenes  of  life  or  landscape  were  traced  by  female 
hands  on  their  tapestries,  there  can  be  little  doubt. 
Archbishop  Cranmer  translates  the  first  and  second 
verses  of  Exodus  xxvi. :  "  Thou  shalt  make  cur- 
taynes  of  whyte  twyned  silke,  yelowe  silke,  purple 
and  scarlet.  And  in  them  thou  shalt  make  pyctures 
of  broidered  work."  The  celebrated  Babylonian 
tapestries  were  wrought  with  the  needle,  and  rep- 
resented either  the  mysteries  of  religion  or  some 
historical  incidents ;  and  the  Greek  and  Roman 
ladies  wrought  embroideries  which  told  to  the  eye 
a  tale  of  hunting  or  war,  of  love  or  sorrow,  and 
even  in  those  early  days  wove  tapestry  little  inferior 
to  that  which  graces  the  halls  of  some  of  our  old 
English  castles  and  mansions. 


152  THE   EXCELLENT   WOMAN. 

The  taste  for  brilliant  coloring,  so  marked  among 
the  people  of  the  East,  seems  a  natural  consequence 
of  the  bright  hue  of  nature  in  the  lands  in  which 
they  reside ;  and  the  sober  tints  of  our  colder 
climate  may  have  had  their  effect  in  moderating 
that  taste  in  our  own  land.  In  countries  in  which 
the  flowrers  are  so  brilliant  that  the  flame  itself  seems 
hardly  to  exceed  their  brightness ;  where  insects 
of  ruby  color  or  of  brightest  emerald  unfold  their 
wings  ;  and  birds  varying  in  tint  from  every  shade 
of  purple  to  faintest  azure  fly  among  the  trees, — 
there  is  a  depth  and  richness  of  coloring  to  which 
our  eye  is  unaccustomed.  The  amethyst  sky  at 
sunset ;  the  very  mountain  peaks,  tinged  as  they 
are,  in  some  eastern  lands,  with  hues  of  rose,  and 
violet,  and  orange, — 

"  For  God  has  set  his  rainbows  on  them,  while  the  cloud 
Lies  at  their  feet : " — 

These,  when  seen  constantly,  tend  to  impart  to  the 
taste  a  love  for  the  bright  and  gorgeous  tints  which 
God  has  lent  to  color  this  earthly  home.  Blue,  in 
every  variety,  was  a  favorite  color  with  the  ancient 
Hebrews.     We  find  it  mentioned  continually  in  the 


THE    TASTEFUL    WOMAN.  153 

decoration  of  the  Tabernacle,  and  the  dress  of  the 
priest ;  and  it  is  generally  thought  to  have  been 
procured  from  indigo,  which  appears  from  the 
mummy  cloths  to  have  been  used  by  the  Egyptians, 
and  was  therefore  doubtless  known  to  the  Jews.  It 
is  rather  remarkable  that  in  modern  times  this  color 
is  not  esteemed  in  Palestine,  nor  admired  as  it  once 
was,  but  has  become  connected  with  the  idea  of 
meanness,  and  worn  only  by  the  poorest  of  the 
people.  But  the  purple  was  the  color  which  appears 
to  have  had  preeminence  in  ancient  times,  and 
which  was  so  generally  appropriated  to  kings  and 
important  personages,  that  even  unto  modern  days 
the  purple  robe  is  emblematic  of  royalty.  At  a 
period  early  as  that  when  Israel  was  ruled  by 
judges,  we  find  mention  of  this  color,  as  worn  by 
royal  persons  ;  and  on  that  eventful  day, 

"  When  grove  was  felled,  and  altar  was  cast  down, 
And  Gideon  blew  the  trumpet,  soul-inflamed, 
And  strong  in  hatred  of  idolatry,"  — 

the  kings  of  Midian  appeared  "  clothed  in  purple 
raiment."  It  was,  too,  with  the  purple  robe  that 
Mordecai  was  decked,  when  he  was  promoted  to 
honor  by  the  Persian  king ;   and  to  be  clothed  in 


154  THE     EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

purple  and  fine  linen  was  the  distinction  of  the  rich 
man  in  the  parable  of  the  New  Testament. 

The  purple  mentioned  in  the  text  is  believed  by 
most  writers  to  be  the  highly- valued  Tyrian  dye. 
This  color  was  known  in  very  ancient  times,  and 
prized,  not  only  by  the  Hebrews,  but  by  the  Greeks 
and  Romans.  It  was  procured  from  two  species  of 
fish  found  on  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  and 
Atlantic  seas  ;  the  one  (buccinum)  adhered  to  the 
rocks  ;  the  other  (purpura)  floated  in  the  soa,  and 
it  was  this  species  which  afforded  the  dye  most  in 
request,  and  which  is  called  in  the  Apocrypha  the 
purple  of  the  sea.  From  various  varieties  of  these 
two  species  of  shell-fish  several  tints  of  purple  were 
obtained.  The  one  was  of  a  paler  hue,  and  more 
resembling  our  scarlet ;  another  was  a  deep  violet 
tint,  a  color  much  valued  by  the  Roman  ladies  in 
the  time  of  Augustus ;  but  the  hue  most  admired 
was  that  deep  purplish  crimson  which  resembles 
clotted  blood.  This  is  said  by  Mr.  Harmer  to  be 
the  most  sublime  of  all  earthly  colors,  "having  the 
gaudiness  of  red,  of  which  it  retains  a  shade,  soft- 
ened by  the  gravity  of  blue." 

We  can  form  some  idea  of  the  expensive  nature 
of  Tyrian  purples,  when  we  consider  how  large  a 


THE    TASTEFUL    WOMAN.  155 

number  of  shell-fish  must  be  collected  to  furnish 
even  a  small  quantity  of  the  dye.  These  fish  were 
sometimes  two  feet  in  length,  but  the  only  portion 
which  yielded  the  color  was  a  small  white  vein  in 
the  neck  ;  so  that  a  number  of  fishermen  must  have 
been  employed  for  many  days,  before  they  could 
obtain  enough  to  color  even  a  single  garment.  The 
art  of  dyeing  the  Tyrian  purple  is  now  lost ;  but  it 
is  probable  that  its  place  is  well  supplied  by  the 
rich  hues  of  vegetable  dyes  employed  in  modern 
times. 

The  Rev.  A.  Bonar  and  Robert  McCheyne,  who 
lately  visited  the  Holy  Land,  on  a  mission  of  inquiry 
respecting  the  Jews,  remark  of  the  shore  near  the 
bay  of  Acre  :  f '  We  saw  some  of  our  neighbors 
seeking  for  specimens  of  the  shell-fish  from  which, 
in  ancient  times,  used  to  be  extracted  the  famous 
purple  dye.  We  did  not  find  any  specimens,  but 
were  told  it  is  still  to  be  found  there.  It  used  to 
be  found  in  all  parts  of  the  bay,  and  there  were  two 
kinds  of  it.  One  of  these  yielded  a  dark  blue  color, 
the  other  a  brighter  tint,  like  scarlet ;  and  by 
mingling  these  two  juices,  the  true  purple  color 
was  obtained."  "  It  was  thus,"  adds  the  writer, 
11 


156  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

"  that  Asher,  whose  rich  and  beautiful  plain  sup- 
plied viands  fit  for  the  table  of  kings,  yielded  also 
the  dye  of  their  royal  robes,  conveyed  to  many  a 
distant  coast  by  the  merchants  of  Tyre  and  Sidon  ; 
and  thus  we  see  the  full  meaning  of  Jacob's  bless- 
ing on  Asher,  '  He  shall  yield  royal  dainties.'  " 

The  great  use  of  the  purple  color  among  the 
wealthy  classes  of  the  Hebrews  gave  employment 
to  many  of  the  Tyrian  merchants.  Thus  we  find 
that  when  Ezekiel  addressed  Tyrus,  in  the  language 
of  prophecy,  he  referred  to  it :  "  Syria  was  thy 
merchant  by  reason  of  the  multitude  of  the  wares 
of  thy  making ;  they  occupied  in  thy  fairs  with 
emeralds,  purple  and  broidered  work."  In  later 
ages,  we  read  of  a  very  interesting  character, 
Lydia,  who  was  "  a  seller  of  purple  "  at  Thyatira, 
whose  "  heart  the  Lord  opened,  that  she  attended 
unto  the  things  which  were  spoken  of  Paul,"  and 
whose  warm  and  earnest  love  to  the  apostle  and  his 
companions  urged  her  to  constrain  them  to  dwell  in 
her  house  ;  and  this  rich  color,  in  which  the  matron 
of  the  text  is  said  to  be  clothed,  was  probably  one 
of  those  species  of  merchandise  which  she  is  said, 
"like  the  merchants'  ships,  to  have  brought  from 
afar." 


5©W3  m  THE  QIVfES) 

ilia  hi  bitfsvh  auvjsm 
THI  BLDIR8  <©?  TMI  LAM©. 


THE     CREDITABLE    WOMAN. 


159 


SECTION    XIV. 

HER   HUSBAND   IS  KNOWN   IN   THE  GATES,  WHEN    HE  SITTETH  AMONG 
THE   ELDERS   OF   THE    LAND. 

REATLY,  indeed,  is  it  to  the  credit 
I  of  a  woman,  that  her  husband  should 
be  known  and  honored  for  her  sake  ; 
'that  in  the  places  of  public  resort  he 
^should  be  recognized  as  the  husband 
of  a  wife,  who  so  arranged  the  household 
duties,  and  took  so  practical  a  part  in 
the  concerns  of  the  family,  that  he  was 
enabled  to  devote  his  time  to  public  business. 
His  dress,  too,  ever  becoming  his  station,  and 
wrought  with  industrious  skill  in  his  own 
home,  would  be  noticed  in  an  oriental  assembly ; 
while  an  unspotted  reputation,  gained  by  a  virtuous 
and  consistent  life,  reflected  its  lustre  on  all  con- 
nected with  the  Jewish  woman. 

And  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  old,  so  is  it  now, 
that  whatever  position  in  life  we  may  occupy,  we 
cannot  stand  alone.  Whether  individual  conduct 
bring  disgrace  or  win  respect,   others  must  share 


160  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

in  it.  So,  too,  we  all  must  influence  others  ;  and 
of  all  means  of  moral  influence,  none  is  greater 
than  that  of  a  good  reputation.  Without  it,  indeed, 
all  good  influence  is  lost.  The  Scripture  proverb 
says,  "A  good  name  is  rather  to  be  chosen  than 
precious  ointment;"  and,  for  the  preservation  of 
this  good  name,  a  woman's  conduct  must  not  only 
be  marked  by  integrity  and  simplicity,  but  it  must 
be  steady  and  uniform.  The  very  shadow  of  ill, 
the  very  appearance  of  evil,  is  to  be  shunned  by 
every  woman  professing  godliness  ;  and  in  the  eye 
of  the  world  she  should  be  blameless,  approving 
herself  not  only  unto  God,  but  also  unto  men. 

When  we  find  it  implied  that  a  woman's  charac- 
ter brought  an  honor  to  her  husband,  we  are  quite 
sure  that  it  was  marked  by  consistency.  This  can 
be  the  result  only  of  the  possession  of  good  princi- 
ples, and  of  a  determination,  by  the  grace  of  God, 
to  make  these  principles  the  basis,  not  only  of  every 
important  duty,  but  of  the  minor  acts  of  life.  It 
must  proceed  from  a  high  and  enlarged  sense  of 
responsibility,  and  was  never  yet  attained  by  any 
who  had  not  seriously  studied  her  own  particular 
duties,   and  cultivated  also  the  duty  of  firmness. 


THE     CREDITABLE    WOMAN.  161 

We  all  rely  fully  on  a  consistent  person,  and 
instinctively  value  his  opinion.  Every  one  must 
have  seen  that  there  are  some,  who,  without  attempt- 
ing to  gain  influence  over  others,  yet  possess  it  to 
so  great  a  degree,  that  even  vice  stands  abashed  in 
their  presence  :  the  swearer  will  fear  to  utter  his 
oath,  the  drunkard  will  feel  ashamed  of  his  sin, 
and  the  frivolous  will  stay  his  folly.  Even  the  little 
child  recognizes  consistency,  and  feels  the  force  of 
reproof  or  praise  uttered  by  its  possessor.  It  is 
remarkable,  too,  that  our  characters  are  generally 
read  fairly,  and  well  understood,  by  those  around 
us.  Weight  of  character  never  fails  to  make  its 
due  impression.  We  are  judged,  not  only  by  the 
expression  of  our  sentiments, — for  in  these  we  might 
deceive, —  but  by  the  hourly  acts  which  make  up 
human  life,  the  impulse  which  prompts  the  uncon- 
sidered word,  the  very  look  which  betrays  the 
thought ;  the  little  things,  which  in  their  individual 
manifestation  seem  nothing,  yet  the  amount  of 
which  makes  up  our  character,  and  causes  it  to  be 
rightly  read. 

The  ancient  custom  of  holding  meetings  for  pub- 
lic justice  under  the  gateway  of  the  town,  as  well 
11* 


162  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

as  the  reference  to  the  elders,  leads  us  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  husband  of  the  Jewish  woman 
held  some  office  of  public  trust.  As  early  as  the 
time  of  Abraham,  we  find  business  transactions 
performed  in  the  gate,  when  the  patriarch  pur- 
chased the  cave  of  Machpelah,  in  the  audience  of 
Heth  ;  and  the  silver  was  weighed  in  the  presence 
of  all  them  that  went  in  at  the  gate  of  the  city. 
And  Boaz  bought  of  Naomi  the  land  of  his  family, 
in  the  presence  of  the  witnesses  at  the  gateway, 
and  of  the  elders.  The  convenience  of  the  gate, 
as  being  not  only  a  regular  place  of  thoroughfare  in 
and  out  of  the  city,  but  a  public  place  of  resort, 
rendered  it  peculiarly  suitable  for  the  transfer  of 
property,  at  a  time  when  written  documents  wTere 
little  known,  and  the  transaction  had  consequently 
to  be  attested  by  several  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
neighborhood.  Homer  states  of  the  Trojans,  that 
their  elders  assembled  in  the  gate  to  judge  of  the 
rights  between  man  and  man. 

In  the  law  of  Moses  we  find  direct  reference  to 
the  practice  of  holding  law-courts  in  these  entrances 
to  towns.  "  Judges  and  officers  shalt  thou  make 
thee  in  all  thy  gates,  which  the  Lord  thy  God  giveth 


THE     CREDITABLE    WOMAN.  163 

thee,  throughout  thy  tribes  ;  and  they  shall  judge 
the  people  with  just  judgment."  And  when  Job 
looked  back  on  more  prosperous  days,  and  corn- 
fared  wTith  them  his  state  of  present  sorrow,  he 
says  :  "  When  I  went  out  to  the  gate  through  the 
city,  when  I  prepared  my  seat  in  the  street !  the 
young  men  saw  me,  and  hid  themselves  ;  and  the 
aged  arose,  and  stood  up  ;  while  the  mournful 
Jeremiah  predicted,  as  one  of  the  signs  of  desola- 
tion on  his  native  land,  that  the  elders  should  cease 
from  the  gate. 

But  beside  the  business  of  judging  the  people 
of  Israel,  and  of  conveying  estates  or  other  prop- 
erty, the  gateway  was  often  a  market-place  ;  and 
there  were  assembled  the  merchants  who  trafficked 
in  the  various  goods  of  the  East.  Thus  wTe  find 
Elisha  announcing  to  the  famished  people  of  Sama- 
ria, "  To-morrow  shall  a  measure  of  fine  flour  be 
sold  for  a  shekel,  and  two  measures  of  barley  for  a 
shekel,  in  the  gate  of  Samaria." 

It  can  easily  be  imagined  that  a  place  of  such 
great  concourse  would  become  a  resort,  not  only 
for  men  of  business,  but  for  men  of  leisure  ;  and  the 
oriental  gateway  held  the  same  place  in  the  town 


164  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

which  is  now  occupied  by  the  coffee-house.  There 
neighbors  met  to  talk  over  the  affairs  of  the  city,  to 
speak  of  the  past,  and  to  speculate  on  the  future  ; 
to  dwell  on  the  faults  of  their  fellow-townsmen,  or 
to  expatiate  on  their  worth.  If  any  man  wished  to 
meet  with  his  neighbor,  he  went  up  to  the  gateway  ; 
if  he  had  public  news  to  communicate,  he  carried 
it  thither.  If  he  wished  to  attract  the  notice  or 
to  win  the  ear  of  the  governor  of  the  city,  he  would 
sit,  day  by  day,  as  Mordecai  did,  in  the  king's 
gate.  So,  too,  we  find  Isaiah  speaking  of  him 
"  that  reproveth  in  the  gate  ;"  and  Jeremiah  deliv- 
ered his  solemn  warnings  and  commands  "  in  the 
gate  of  the  children  of  the  people  ;"  and  it  was 
when  the  Psalmist  felt  that  he  had  become  the 
object  of  the  unjust  reproaches  of  his  neighbors, 
that  he  said,  "  They  that  sit  in  the  gate  speak 
against  me." 

It  does  not  appear  that  the  assembly  of  people 
who  thus  met  in  the  gateway  formed  any  hindrance 
to  the  passing  of  the  towns-people  in  and  out  of  the 
city.  In  eastern  gateways,  in  the  present  day, 
there  is  a  slightly  raised  seat  on  both  sides  of  the 
arch,  and  under  the  pleasant  shadow  of  the  wall 


THE    CREDITABLE    WOMAN.  165 

the  man  of  the  East  still  lounges  and  chats,  and 
receives  company.  Such  accommodation  no  doubt 
belonged  to  the  Hebrew  gate.  There  are,  besides, 
on  each  side  of  some  gateways,  open  rooms  or  cells 
in  the  walls  of  the  gate,  in  which  a  number  of  peo- 
ple sit  during  the  greater  part  of  the  day. 

It  was  because  of  the  publicity  of  the  Hebrew 
gateway,  that  the  Lord  commanded  the  ancient 
Israelite  to  write  upon  it  the  words  of  his  holy  law. 
Texts  of  the  sacred  book  were  ordered  to  be  trans- 
cribed upon  the  posts  of  their  houses,  and  upon 
their  gates,  that  all  Israel  might  continually  be 
reminded  of  the  Great  Jehovah,  and  of  his  high  and 
holy  commands.  The  laborer,  as  he  went  forth  to 
his  fields  and  his  vines,  looked  up  to  the  written 
words,  and  the  merchant's  busy  thoughts  of  gain 
were  sometimes  arrested  and  brought  into  a  differ- 
ent course.  Many  a  pious  Israelite  regarded  them 
with  love  and  reverence,  and  perhaps,  like  David, 
thanked  God  for  them,  and  could  exclaim,  "  Thy 
word  is  very  pure ;  therefore  thy  servant  loveth 
it;"  and  often  they  suggested  thoughts  of  prayer,  or 
led  the  mind  of  the  pious  Jew  forward  to  the  Great 
Messiah,  who  should  come  one  day  to  fulfil  all  those 


166  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

solemn  types  and  shadows  which  the  law  now  set 
forth,  and  who  should,  under  a  more  glorious  dis- 
pensation, himself  magnify  the  law,  and  make  it 
honorable. 

"  What  I  most  prize  in  woman 
Is  her  affection,  not  her  intellect. 
Compare  me  with  the  great  men  of  the  earth — 
What  am  I  ?     Why,  a  pigmy  among  giants ! 
But  if  thou  lovest,  —  mark  me,  I  say  lovest,  — 
The  greatest  of  thy  sex  excels  thee  not ! 
The  world  of  the  affections  is  thy  world  — 
Not  that  of  man's  ambition.     In  that  stillness 
Which  most  becomes  a  woman,  calm  and  holy, 
Thou  sittest  by  the  fireside  of  the  heart, 
Feeding  its  flame.     The  element  of  fire 
Is  pure.     It  cannot  change  or  hide  its  nature, 
But  burns  as  brightly  in  a  gypsy  camp 
As  in  a  palace  hall." 


THE   TRAFFICKING    WOMAN. 


169 


SECTION    XV. 

SHE      MAKETH     FINE    LINEN,    AND     SELLETH   IT  ',     AND    DELIVERETH 
GIRDLES   UNTO    THE   MERCHANT. 

IBLICAL  critics  have  carefully 
'studied  the  Hebrew  word  here  trans- 
lated "fine  linen."  Woollen  gar- 
ments seem  to  have  formed  the 
rchief  articles  of  dress  among  the 
| •  ancient  Jews;  but  both  in  Egypt  and 
; Syria  garments  were  also  worn  of  fine 
J  linen  and  cotton,  as  well  as  of  a  substance 
called  byssus.  This  latter  material  seems  to 
have  been  a  fabric  of  fine  muslin — one  of 
those  "  webs  woven  of  air,"  which  in  India 
are  worn  at  the  present  day,  and  which  the  Hindoo 
ladies  wrap  around  them  in  numerous  folds  of 
drapery.  It  seems  probable  that  persons  of  wealth 
and  distinction  in  Canaan,  as  well  as  the  priests  and 
Levites,  wore  garments  of  fine  linen,  either  white 
or  dyed  ;  made  of  the  linen  manufactured  either  in 
Egypt,  or  of  the  somewhat  inferior  quality  made  in 


170  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

the  Jewish  household,  such  as  was  wrought  by  the 
excellent  woman  in  the  text. 

The  general  culture  of  flax  in  Palestine,  the 
statement  that  the  women  spun  it  for  the  hangings 
of  the  tabernacle,  and  the  still  more  immediate  fact 
that  this  woman,  when  she  worked  willingly  with 
her  hands,  sought  flax  as  well  as  wool,  leads  us  to 
infer  that  in  this  passage  at  least  the  rendering  of 
linen  rather  than  silk  or  cotton  is  the  true  one. 
Although,  according  to  the  Talmudists,  the  ancient 
Hebrew  wore  a  woollen  garment  next  his  skin  by 
day,  yet  cleanliness  and  comfort  rendered  it  neces- 
sary that  the  nightly  dress  should  be  made  of  linen, 
and  this  appears  to  have  been  the  general  practice. 
Many  of  the  robes  of  purple,  scarlet,  blue,  and 
other  colors,  of  which  we  read,  appear  to  have  been 
of  a  linen  fabric. 

But  this  word  is  thought  by  some  writers  to  imply 
a  loose  inner  garment,  generally  worn  in  the  East 
—  a  kind  of  shirt.  Kimchi  thinks  the  word  signi- 
fies a  night-covering,  and  considers  that  it  ought  to 
be  translated  "  linen  sheets."  "  The  Arabic," 
says  Dr.  Clarke,  "  gives  a  remarkable  rendering  of 
this  verse  :  '  She  maketh  towels  or  table-cloths,  and 


THE    TRAFFICKING    WOMAN.  171 

sells  them  to  the  inhabitants  of  Bozra, —  a  city  of 
Mesopotamia, —  and  fine  linen,  and  sells  them  to 
the  Canaanites.'  "  Kitto  concurs  with  the  Rabbi  in 
thinking  that  the  word  here  used  describes  either 
sheets,  or  else  under  garments  made  of  linen.  It 
is  the  same  as  is  rendered  sheets  in  the  book  of 
Judges,  wrhere  Samson  promised  thirty  sheets  and 
thirty  changes  of  raiment,  as  a  reward  for  guessing 
his  riddle.  It  is  not  at  all  probable  that  in  this 
latter  case  sheets  are  intended,  because,  when  Sam- 
son slew  thirty  Philistines  near  Ashkelon,  it  is 
hardly  to  be  supposed  that  they  were  carrying  their 
bed-clothes  with  them.  Besides,  they  would,  like 
all  other  eastern  beds,  have  had  two  sheets,  and 
therefore  thirty  would  have  provided  twice  the 
number  required,  while  the  shirts  taken  from  the 
bodies  of  the  slain  would  have  exactly  supplied 
Samson  with  the  means  of  performing  his  promise. 

As  no  pictures  or  monuments  have  descended 
from  the  people  of  Israel  to  the  modern  Jew,  we 
have  no  definite  means  of  ascertaining  their  mode 
of  dress.  Scripture  allusions  form  our  chief  guide, 
but  tradition,  as  well  as  the  costumes  figured  on  the 

monuments  of  the  other  ancient  nations  of  the  East, 
12 


172  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

and  the  present  mode  of  dress  in  Egypt  and  the 
Holy  Land,  afford  some  assistance.  It  is  still  cus- 
tomary for  the  Bedouin  to  wear  a  cotton  or  woollen 
shirt  or  frock,  generally  fastened  round  the  waist 
with  a  girdle.  This  is  often,  in  summer,  the  only 
dress  of  the  poor,  and  is  the  usual  in-door  dress  even 
of  the  wealthy  class  of  society.  In  winter,  persons 
of  humble  condition  wear  over  this  garment  the 
woollen  mantle  or  "  hyke,"  a  kind  of  dress  very 
similar  to  the  plaid  of  the  Scottish  Highlander. 
The  hyke  may  be  described  as  a  large  woollen 
blanket,  serving  as  a  covering  both  for  day  and  for 
night ;  and  was,  most  likely,  the  garment  referred 
to  in  that  humane  provision  of  the  law,  where,  if 
the  Israelite  took  a  pledge  of  his  poorer  brother,  he 
was  enjoined  :  "In  any  case  thou  shalt  deliver  him 
the  pledge  again  when  the  sun  goeth  down,  that  he 
may  sleep  in  his  own  raiment,  and  bless  thee  ;  and 
it  shall  be  righteousness  unto  thee  before  the  Lord 
thy  God." 

The  Talmud  enumerates  eighteen  several  gar- 
ments, as  forming  the  dress  of  the  ancient  Israel- 
ites ;  and  it  is  evident  from  Scripture,  that  many 


THE    TRAFFICKING    WOMAN.  173 

robes  and  garments  were  worn  by  the  rich,  though 
the  frock  and  mantle  might  serve  for  the  poor. 

That  fine  linen  was  worn  only  by  persons  of  dis- 
tinction in  Canaan,  is  very  apparent,  from  the  value 
attached  to  it,  and  the  comparisons  it  suggested. 
When  the  beloved  apostle  John  wrote,  in  the  isle 
of  Patmos,  that  solemn  revelation  of  prophecy,  so 
much  of  which  yet  remains  unfulfilled  to  the  church 
and  to  the  world,  the  fine  linen,  pure  and  white, 
presented  to  his  mind  an  image  of  the  righteousness 
of  the  redeemed  church.  "  And  to  her,"  says  he, 
"  was  granted  that  she  should  be  arrayed  in  fine 
linen,  clean  and  white  ;  for  the  fine  linen  is  the 
righteousness  of  saints," — that  spotless  robe 
wrought  by  the  Saviour,  for  every  child  of  God, 
redeemed  from  among  men  by  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb,  sanctified  by  his  Spirit,  and  made  meet  for 
tuning  the  golden  harp  of  the  celestial  city, —  that 
robe,  of  which  the  Saviour  says,  "I  counsel  thee 
to  buy  of  me  white  raiment,  that  thou  mayest  be 
clothed;"  lest,  being  unclothed,  the  sinner  should 
find,  at  the  great  day  of  God's  judgment,  that  he 
was  "  poor,  and  miserable,  and  blind,  and  naked," 
having  nothing  in  which  to   appear  but  his  own 


174  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

righteousness,  which  the  Scripture  has  declared  to 
be,  in  the  sight  of  God,  but  as  "  filthy  rags." 

In  a  house  in  which  the  manufacture  of  various 
tissues  seems  to  have  been  carried  on  so  diligently 
as  in  that  of  the  excellent  woman,  linen  enough 
would  be  wrought  for  traffic.  Both  this  and  the 
girdles  were  probably  sold,  not  only  to  the  mer- 
chants of  her  own  city,  but  also  to  the  Canaanites, 
or  Phoenicians,  who  traded  with  them  to  Egypt  and 
other  distant  lands,  which  their  ships  visited. 

The  continual  reference  to  the  girdle  in  Scripture 
establishes  the  fact,  that  among  the  ancient  Hebrews 
it  was  considered  as  necessary  an  article  of  attire 
as  it  is  in  the  present  day  in  oriental  countries.  Its 
use  in  girding  the  loins  for  exertion  has  been 
already  referred  to,  but  it  served  also  for  various 
other  purposes.  The  ancient  Jews  are  supposed  to 
have  worn  two  girdles, —  the  one  around  the  body, 
under  their  inner  garment,  the  other  around  their 
outer  dress.  It  was  this  latter  girdle  which  was 
tightened  for  exercise.  The  wealthy  Jews,  who 
evidently  paid  much  attention  to  dress,  no  doubt 
prided  themselves  upon  the  taste  and  manufacture 
of  this  portion  of  it.    In  the  present  day,  the  Arabs 


THE    TRAFFICKING    WOMAN.  175 

■wear,  as  a  girdle,  an  embroidered  shawl,  or  a  figured 
muslin,  and  the  girdle  is  a  piece  of  outward  finery 
throughout  the  East.  Sometimes  it  is  beautifully 
wrought  with  colored  wools  or  silks,  shells,  beads, 
etc.  Among  the  poorer  classes,  leathern  girdles 
are  still  worn,  and  probably  differ  little  from  that 
with  which  John  the  Baptist  fastened  his  camel's- 
hair  garments.  Leathern  girdles  are  also  worn  by 
the  richer  Arab,  when  he  prepares  his  dress  for  a 
journey. 

The  girdle  most  commonly  worn  by  the  ancient 
Hebrews  was  probably  made  of  woollen  fabric, 
skilfully  wrought  by  woman's  hand  with  embroi- 
dered patterns.  It  folded  several  times  round  the 
body,  and  confined  the  floating  garment.  One  end 
of  this  girdle  was  doubled  back,  and  sewn  at  the 
edge,  so  as  to  form  a  purse ;  and  was  most  likely 
referred  to  by  our  Saviour,  when,  sending  forth  his 
apostles  on  their  holy  mission  of  love,  he  said, 
"  Provide  neither  gold,  nor  silver,  nor  brass,  in 
your  purses."  The  Romans  and  Greeks  also  formed 
their  purses  by  the  folding  of  the  girdle,  and  there 
carried  their  money.  Paxton  quotes  the  saying  of 
C.  Gracchus,  in  Aulus  Gellius :  "Those  girdles 
12* 


176  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

which  I  carried  out  full  of  money,  when  I  went 
from  Rome,  I  have,  at  my  return  from  the  province, 
brought  home  empty."  Forbes  mentions  that  the 
Mahrattes  of  the  present  day  generally  carry  in 
their  leathern  girdles,  covered  with  velvet,  their 
most  valuable  papers  and  precious  jewels. 

It  appears  from  the  Scriptures,  that  the  ancient 
Hebrews,  like  the  modern  Turks,  wore  a  poniard  or 
sword  in  their  girdle  ;  for  we  read,  "  And  Joab's 
garment  that  he  had  put  on  was  girded  unto  him, 
and  upon  it  a  girdle  with  a  sword  fastened  upon  his 
loins  in  the  sheath  thereof;  and  as  he  went  forth, 
it  fell  out."  This  practice  must  not  be  understood 
as  designed  for  a  cruel  and  revengeful  purpose,  but 
originated  in  the  want  of  knives.  The  Turkish 
secretary,  or  writer  of  modern  days,  substitutes  for 
this  weapon  in  his  girdle  the  ink-horn  and  the  pen  ; 
and  it  seems  probable  that  those  among  the  Jews 
whose  employments  were  of  a  literary  character 
wore  ink-horns  in  their  girdles.  Thus  we  read  in 
Ezekiel  of  one  who  was  clothed  with  linen,  and 
had  an  ink-horn  by  his  side.  The  pens  too  are 
placed  in  the  girdle,  and  the  ink-horn  is  firmly 
closed  with  a  clasped  lid. 


THE    TRAFFICKING    WOMAN.  177 

The  manufacture  of  girdles  for  the  merchants 
would,  of  course,  employ  many  hands.  When  we 
consider,  too,  that  girdles,  as  well  as  robes,  are  in 
request  for  presents  all  over  the  East,  this  alone 
requires  a  great  supply.  The  Rev.  W.  Jowett  has 
said  that  the  two  words  "  give,  give,"  might  very 
properly  be  taken  as  a  motto  to  the  armorial  bear- 
ings of  Syria.  No  one  would  think  of  appearing 
before  a  great  man  without  a  present  in  his  hand  : 
as  says  the  proverb,  "  A  man's  gift  maketh  room 
for  him,  and  bringeth  him  before  great  men  ;"  and 
the  habit  of  giving  gifts,  especially  of  various  parts 
of  the  dress,  extends  itself  to  the  most  ordinary 
occasions.  The  gift  of  a  girdle  from  a  warrior 
was  evidently  a  great  mark  of  friendship.  Among 
the  Greeks  and  Romans  also  it  was  thus  considered. 
When  Hector  and  Ajax  ceased  from  the  combat,  in 
which  they  had  encountered  each  other,  Hector 
gave  his  girdle  to  Ajax,  as  a  token  of  amity.  In 
the  book  of  Samuel  we  find  Joab  blaming  the  man 
who  saw  Absalom  hanging  in  the  wood,  in  these 
words,  "  Why  didst  thou  not  smite  him  there  to 
the  ground  ?  and  I  would  have  given  thee  ten 
shekels  of  silver,  and  a  girdle."     Jonathan,  too 


178  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

the  "  lovely  and  pleasant"  Jonathan,  when  about 
to  certify  the  covenant  made  between  himself  and 
his  friend,  gave,  among  other  things,  his  girdle  to 
David ;  and  even  to  the  present  day,  the  girdle  is 
often  loosed  and  given  to  one  who  is  beloved.  "  And 
Jonathan  stripped  himself  of  the  robe  that  was  upon 
him,  and  gave  it  to  David ;  and  his  garments,  even 
to  his  sword,  and  to  his  bow,  and  to  his  girdle." 

"  She,  while  her  husband  toiled  in  state  affairs, 

Eased  him  of  all  his  economic  cares ; 

In  all  that  bounded  was  within  her  sphere, 

Her  wisdom  shined,  in  her  whole  conduct  clear ; 
\   No  vain  expense  she  on  herself  bestowed, 

A  spirit  frugal  and  yet  generous  showed  ; 

She  of  God's  blessings  could  no  waste  endure, 

But  in  rewards  was  bountiful  and  sure ; 

The  poor  had  an  allotted  liberal  share 

In  all  that  she  with  decency  could  spare. 

Her  usual  dress  was  comely,  never  gay, 

No  new  vain  fashion  could  her  judgment  sway ; 

Her  speech  was  uncensorious  and  restrained,  — 

All  that  she  spake  a  pleased  attention  gained." 


^»»K*% 


Y@  ©&M&, 


THE    REPUTABLE    WOMAN. 


181 


SECTION    XVI. 


STRENGTH     AND     HONOR     ARE    HER     CLOTHING  J     AND     SHE     SHALL 
REJOICE    IN    TIME   TO    COME. 


0  one  can  fail  to  see  that  the  char- 
acter ascribed  to  this  Avoman,  espe- 
cially the  stability  of  her  conduct, 
and  the   good  reputation  which    it 


2  gained  her,  render  this  figure  suffi- 


ciently expressive.  She  was,  indeed, 
clothed  in  strength  and  honor,  and  might 
1111,  well  rejoice  in  coming  days.  For  old 
age  she  had  prepared  something. more  than 
a  store  of  mere  worldly  good.  She  had  not 
only  been  provident  of  present  wealth,  and 
wrought  such  works  as  time  should  not  easily  injure, 
—  such  as  she  should  not  blush  to  acknowledge  as 
hers  in  future  time, —  but  she  had  laid  up  in  the 
hearts  of  her  husband  and  children,  and  the  poor 
and  needy,  a  treasure  of  love,  which  time  should 
not  change.  Above  all,  if  the  days  should  come, 
when,  in  the  figurative  language  of  Solomon,  the 
grasshopper  should  be  a  burden,  and  desire  should 


182  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

fail,  and  the  almond-tree  should  blossom,  her  help 
and  stay  would  be  on  God,  her  hope  and  trust  in 
heaven,  and  the  joy  of  the  Lord  should  be  her 
strength.  He  who  had  sustained  her  through  the 
active  period  of  life, —  who  had  kept  alive  in  her 
heart  his  love  and  fear  at  a  period  when  tempta- 
tions from  outward  circumstances  and  inward 
feelings  were  great, —  would  not  fail  her  in  days 
when  exertion  would  become  toil,  and  when  the 
desire  of  rest  had  taken  the  place  of  pleasure  in 
her  heart :  for  he  had  said,  "  Even  to  your  old  age 
I  am  he  ;  and  even  to  hoar  hairs  will  1  carry  you." 
How  beautiful  and  graceful  is  the  repose  of  the 
aged  servant  of  God !  How  placid  the  mental  rest 
and  assurance  of  one  who  has  served  God  from 
youth  upward  !  The  Christian  graces,  mellowed  by 
time,  shine  now  with  a  mild  and  settled  lustre  ;  and 
the  meek  waiting  upon  God  diffuses  over  the  later 
hours  of  life  its  calm  and  steady  light,  like  the  soft 
tints  which  the  moon  casts  on  the  tranquil  sea. 
Every  one  too  must  rejoice,  who  has  been  enabled, 
by  God's  grace,  to  maintain  through  life  a  consistent 
profession  of  holiness  ;  and  to  have  spent  the  days 
in  useful  employment  must  bring   to  old  age  its 


THE    REPUTABLE    WOMAN.  183 

pleasant  recollections.  No  self-gratulation  would 
indeed  fill  the  pious  mind,  on  a  review  of  the  past. 
"Not  unto  us,  0  Lord,  not  unto  us,  but  to  thy 
name"  be  the  praise,  would  be  the  exclamation  of 
one  who  opened  her  mouth  with  wisdom  ;  but  she 
would  trace  with  thankfulness  how  God  had  led 
her  all  her  life  through  the  wilderness  ;  how  he  had 
placed  her  in  a  land  where  his  ordinances  were 
known,  and  his  name  honored;  and  had  enabled 
her  to  conduct  her  household  in  the  fear  of  the 
Lord,  and  to  provide  them  with  every  temporal  and 
spiritual  good.  For  such  blessings  she  wTould 
rejoice  in  the  time  to  come,  in  the  season  of  gray 
hairs ;  for  such  pleasant  remembrances,  she  would 
lift  up  her  heart  to  God  and  be  thankful. 

But  the  time  to  come  may  have  reference  to  the 
day  of  death, —  to  that  solemn  hour  of  final  parting 
with  earth, —  to  that  glorious  moment  of  entering 
heaven  ;  and  at  a  period  when  the  worldly  woman 
might  shrink  with  fear,  she  might  rejoice  in  the 
Lord.  For  David  sang,  and  the  response  to  his 
harp  has  been  echoed  by  millions  of  God's  children 
in  the  last  hour, —  "  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the 
valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  I  will  fear  no  evil : 


184  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

for  thou  art  with  me  ;  thy  rod  and  thy  staff  they 
comfort  me."  Leaning  on  this  staff,  how  many 
pious  men  and  women  of  all  ages  have  entered  the 
valley,  singing  as  they  went !  Many  years  before 
this  time,  Jacob  had  said,  on  his  dying  bed,  "  I  have 
waited  for  thy  salvation,  0  Lord  ;"  and  Job,  full 
of  a  fervent  faith,  had  exclaimed,  "  I  know  that 
my  Redeemer  liveth,  and  that  he  shall  stand  at  the 
latter  day  upon  the  earth  ;  and  though  after  my 
skin  worms  destroy  this  body,  yet  in  my  flesh  shall 
I  see  God."  We  have  not  recorded  for  us  the  last 
breathings  of  Moses  ;  yet  how  calmly  and  cheerfully 
did  he  resign  his  breath  !  And  when  the  Lord  bade 
him  go  up  alone  to  Mount  Nebo,  and  to  die  there, 
after  having  given  his  last  glance  to  the  promised 
land,  what  was  his  testimony  of  his  heavenly 
Father?  "Yea,"  said  the  dying  saint,  "the 
Lord  loved  his  people  ;"  and  looking  up  to  God,  he 
added,  "  all  his  saints  are  in  thy  hand  :"  and  thus 
he  rejoiced  in  God,  when  heart  and  flesh  "were  fail- 
ing. "  Ah  !  "  said  a  holy  woman,  known  to  the 
writer,  "  in  a  few  moments  I  shall  be  in  heaven  ;  I 
have  nothing  to  do  now ;  I  am  only  waiting  :  0 


THE    REPUTABLE    WOMAN.  185 

how  I  long  to  be  released  !     Christ  is  with  me  ; 
nature  may  fail,  but  he  never  will." 

The  "  time  to  come  "  may  also  have  reference  to 
eternity, —  to  the  unending  myriads  of  years  to  be 
spent  in  the  presence  of  God, —  to  the  days  of 
glory  to  be  passed  in  that  heavenly  city,  to  which 
the  pious  Jew,  as  well  as  the  Christian,  was  tend- 
ing, where  the  inhabitant  shall  no  more  go  out. 
And  who  shall  describe  or  imagine  the  joys  of 
heaven  ?  What  earthly  tongue  shall  tell  of  the 
rejoicing  in  that  time  to  come,  when  the  Lord  shall 
say,  "  Well  done,  thou  good  and  faithful  servant, 
enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord"  ? 

"  Hath  she  not  soothed  me  sick,  enriched  when  poor, 
And  banished  grief  and  misery  from  my  door  ? 
Hath  she  not  cherished  every  moment's  bliss, 
And  made  an  Eden  of  a  world  like  this  ? 
When  care  would  strive  with  us  his  watch  to  keep, 
Hath  she  not  sung  the  snarling  fiend  to  sleep  ? 
And  when  distress  hath  looked  us  in  the  face, 
Hath  she  not  told  him,  thou  art  not  disgrace  ? " 

13 


186  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    XVII. 

SHE   OPENETH   HER   MOUTH    WITH    WISDOM  )    AND   IN    HER  TONGUE  19 
THE    LAW    OF    KINDNESS. 

^^^^^/  ELIGHTED,  we  turn  from  the  con- 
^tllraN W?yL  ^emplation  of  the  active  duties  of 
^^^^^i^^this  Jewish  matron,  to  the  gentle 
"^^»X^^  graces  which  adorn  her  character.  So 
W%4w^^^many  Pro°fs  °f  practical  judiciousness 
f<J^/k§L are  exni°ited  m  ^s  portraiture,  that  we 
{^M$f&  are  not  surprised  to  find  that  she  also 
4$|S&1V  opened  her  mouth  with  wisdom.  It  is, 
^\ji£  however,  a  most  difficult  part  of  self-govern- 
/  |9Bw  ment  to  guard  the  tongue.  The  apostle 
James  recognized  this,  when  he  said,  "  If 
any  man  offend  not  in  word,  the  same  is  a  perfect 
man,  and  able  also  to  bridle  the  whole  body."  And 
yet  how  important  a  medium  of  good  or  ill  is  con- 
versation! The  children  in  a  household  gather 
instruction  not  only  from  direct  teaching,  but  from 
the  casual  expressions  to  which  they  listen.  A 
word  spoken  in  due  season,  how  good  is  it !  and 
happy   are  they,  who  form  part  of  the  domestic 


\  '  &ME>  OM  her  Tossemis  OS  THE  ilm»  ®f  BtUDBEHSS. 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  189 

circle  of  one  whose  piety  and  experience  of  life 
enable  her  to  give  wise  counsels,  and  to  utter  senti- 
ments of  justice  and  truth. 

The  wisdom  for  which  this  woman  is  commended 
related  not  alone  to  the  things  of  the  present  world. 
She  was  one  who  feared  the  Lord.  She  could  tell 
to  her  listening  household  of  the  wonders  of  nature  ; 
and  of  the  deliverances  wrought  by  God's  providence 
to  ancient  Israel,  how  he  brought  them  through  the 
Red  Sea,  and  out  of  the  land  of  bondage,  and  gave 
them  the  promised  country.  She  could  point  to  the 
infallible  laws  of  nature,  and  show  that  the  morning 
sun  and  the  evening  star  never  disappointed  him 
who  watched  for  them  in  the  heavens.  She  could 
point  to  the  lily  of  the  field,  which  bloomed  at  its 
appointed  season,  and  to  the  swallow  which  knew 
the  time  of  its  coming,  and  infer  from  them  that  he 
who  gave  his  written  promise  would  as  assuredly 
fulfil  this  also.  She  could  discern  in  the  types  and 
figures  of  God's  law  the  shadows  of  a  more  glorious 
future  ;  and  the  promise  of  Messiah,  the  Hope  of 
Israel,  who  was  to  bring  comfort  and  holiness  to  the 
church  of  God,  was  a  living  fountain  of  joy  in  her 
bosom.     Doubtless,  too,  she  could  tell  of  family  and 


190  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

individual  mercies ;  for  God  never  implanted  his  fear 
in  any  human  heart,  but  in  that  heart  was  awakened 
a  chord  of  love  and  gratitude,  which  excited  it  to 
praise.  She  could  remind  her  children  of  God's 
solemn  commands,  and,  speaking  of  the  saints  of 
older  times,  could  bid  them  to  be  "  not  slothful,  but 
followers  of  them  who  through  faith  and  patience 
inherited  the  promises."  Hers  was  the  wisdom 
described  in  Scripture  as  that  which  cometh  from 
above,  which  is  "  first  pure,  then  peaceable,  gentle, 
and  easy  to  be  entreated,  full  of  mercy  and  good 
fruits,  without  partiality  and  without  hypocrisy." 

But  the  wisdom  of  the  Jewish  woman  related  not 
alone  to  the  things  of  our  better  life  ;  it  took  cog- 
nizance also  of  the  affairs  of  this.  "While  she  did 
not  always  speak  of  the  things  of  religion,  she  spoke 
always  as  a  religious  woman,  as  one  who  felt  the 
responsibility  of  life  and  duty. 

"  Methinks  we  see  thee,  as  in  olden  times, 
Unmoved  by  pomp  or  circumstance,  —  in  truth, 
Inflexible,  and  with  a  Spartan  zeal 
Repressing  vice  and  making  folly  grave. 
Thou  didst  not  deem  it  woman's  part  to  waste 
Life  in  inglorious  sloth,  —  to  sport  a  while 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  191 

Amid  the  flowers,  or  on  the  summer  wave, 
Then  fleet,  like  the  ephemeron,  away ; 
Building  no  temple  in  her  children's  hearts, 
Save  to  the  vanity  and  pride  of  life 
Which  she  had  worshipped." 

The  wisdom  with  which  this  woman  opened  her 
mouth  was  most  likely  that  derived  from  experience 
of  life,  from  thought  and  observation,  and  a  knowl- 
edge of  her  own  heart.  It  was  something  better 
than  mere  learning,  and  did  not  consist  in  a  simple 
acquaintance  with  facts.  Facts,  witji  such  a  woman, 
wrould  form  the  basis  of  intelligent  thought ;  and 
while  her  wisdom  would  not  be  opposed  to  cheerful 
converse  and  the  play  of  fancy,  it  would  discoun- 
tenance sin  and  folly,  and  all  profane  jestings  or 
irreligious  allusions,  and  qualify  her  to  give  good 
counsels  as  a  mother  in  Israel. 

"  Knowledge  and  wisdom,  far  from  heing  one, 
Have  ofttimes  no  connection.     Knowledge  dwells 
In  heads  replete  with  thoughts  of  other  men ; 
Wisdom,  in  minds  attentive  to  their  own. 
Knowledge,  a  rude,  unprofitable  mass, 
The  mere  material  with  which  wisdom  builds, 

13* 


192  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

Till  smoothed  and  squared,  and  fitted  to  its  place, 
Does  but  encumber  whom  it  seems  to  enrich. 
Knowledge  is  proud  that  he  has  learned  so  much, 
Wisdom  is  humble  that  he  knows  no  more." 

It  is  a  beautiful  and  appropriate  praise  of  worn;  n, 
that  on  her  tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness.  When 
we  look  on  this  fallen  world,  and  see  what  misery 
has  been  brought  into  it  by  sin ;  that  the  storm, 
and  the  famine,  and  poverty,  and  sickness,  bring 
sufferings  which  none  can  avert ;  and  when  we  see, 
too,  that  there  exist  sorrows  deeper  still  than  these, 
and  hear  the  expressions  wrung  out  from  hearts  full 
of  anguish,  —  how  strange  does  it  seem,  that  any 
should  add  to  the  afflictions  of  life  by  a  want  of 
kindness,  or  aggravate  by  cruel  words  the  bitterness 
with  which  the  heart  is  already  breaking  !  And  if 
the  sorrows  of  life  demand  sympathy  and  help  from 
every  member  of  the  human  family,  —  if  it  is  by 
bearing  one  another's  burdens  that  we  are  to  fulfil 
the  law  of  Christ, — surely  there  is  an  especial  claim 
on  woman  for  deeds  and  words  of  kindness.  On 
her  devolve  all  the  tender  offices  of  life.  To  her 
care  is  given  the  frail  and  helpless  infant,  needing 
from  the  hour  of  its  birth  all  that  deep  and  earnest 


THE    PEACEFUL   WOMAN.  193 

solicitude,  and  patience,  and  self-denial,  which  God 
has  provided  for  in  the  richness  and  fulness  of 
maternal  love.  In  her  charge,  too,  is  placed  the 
simple  child,  with 'its  questionings  of  wonder  and 
its  innocent  confidence  ;  needing  the  exercise  of 
love  and  tenderness,  to  restrain  the  sinful  propensi- 
ties of  its  nature,  and  to  lead  into  the  paths  of  peace. 
And  where  is  woman's  kindness  more  often  needed, 
or  more  often  seen,  than  in  the  chamber  of  sickness  ? 
It  is  hers  to  watch  through  days  and  nights  by  the 
couch  of  suffering ;  to  tread  so  softly  as  not  to 
disturb  the  lightest  sleep ;  to  anticipate  every  wTant ; 
to  bear  patiently  with  the  irritability  of  pain  ;  and 
to  minister  relief  with  a  tact  and  unweariedness  to 
be  found  nowhere  so  securely  as  in  woman's  love. 
It  is  often  woman's  lot,  too,  to  point  the  dying  man 
to  that  atonement  for  sin  which  the  death  of  the 
Saviour  has  provided  ;  and  frequently,  in  dwellings 
where  the  foot  of  the  man  of  God  may  not  have 
found  its  way,  she  may  be  found  bringing  the  joyful 
tidings  of  salvation  to  the  repentant  sinner. 

"  0  woman  !  though  thy  fragile  form 
Bows  like  the  willow  to  the  storm, 


194  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

Ill  suited  in  unequal  strife 

To  brave  the  ruder  scenes  of  life  ; 

Yet,  if  the  power  of  grace  divine 

Find  in  thy  lowly  heart  a  shrine, 

Then,  in  thy  very  weakness  strong, 

Thou  winn'st  thy  noiseless  course  along ; 

Weaving  thine  influence  with  the  ties 

Of  sweet  domestic  charities, 

And  softening  haughtier  spirits  down, 

By  happy  contact  with  thine  own." 

God  has  provided  for  woman's  duties  by  endow- 
ing her  with  the  faculties  which  tend  to  their  per- 
formance. He  has  given  the  quick  sensibility  ;  the 
lively  imagination,  which  helps  her  to  guess,  by  a 
word  or  glance,  at  the  feelings  of  others  ;  and,  in 
most  cases,  a  warm  devotion  to  those  whom  she 
loves ;  and  it  cannot  be  denied  that  impulses  of 
kindness  are  generally  found  in  the  female  sex.  It 
remains  for  a  holier  motive  than  mere  human  feel- 
ing to  make  this  kindness  constant  and  enduring  ; 
and  it  needs  a  sense  of  duty,  derived  from  a  consid- 
eration of  love  to  God,  to  enable  woman  to  be  kind 
always,  and  be  kind  to  all,  even  her  enemies,  and 
especially  to  let  all  her  words  be  governed  by  the 
law  of  kindness. 


THE     PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  195 

It  is  often  a  painful  subject  of  remark,  that  some- 
times the  very  woman  whose  kind  acts  may  be 
depended  on  is  guilty  of  a  serious  want  of  kindness 
in  her  conversation ;  but  it  must  be  admitted  that 
many,  even  of  the  educated  in  our  own  land, — nay, 
many  even  among  Christian  women, —  are  lament- 
ably deficient  in  this  respect.  This  we  shall  see, 
if  we  consider  to  what  the  law  of  kindness  in  the 
tongue  is  opposed.  It  is  opposed  to  angry  words. 
How  many  yield  to  angry  passions,  and  utter,  in 
unguarded  moments,  words  which  can  never  be 
recalled,  and  which  leave  a  painful  impression  on 
others,  not  to  be  effaced,  while  they  thus  lay  up  for 
themselves  a  store  of  bitter  remembrances !  Many 
reproofs  are  given  in  anger,  which  excite  in  the 
person  reproved  no  feeling  but  that  of  ill-will ; 
whereas,  had  they  been  spoken  wisely  and  gently, 
they  might  have  softened  the  heart.  Anger  is  a 
temporary  madness,  discomposing  the  spirit,  and 
rendering  it  unfit  either  for  earthly  duty  or  heavenly 
communion.  It  is,  as  the  proverb  declares,  "a 
snare  to  the  soul."  A  person  cannot  pray  while 
under  its  influence.  How  can  we  ask  for  sins  to 
be  forgiven,  if  we  are  either  angry  without  a  cause, 


196  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

or  even  on  lawful  causes  are  carrying  anger  too  far  ? 
or  who  can  turn,  in  the  midst  of  proud  and  angry 
words,  to  the  lowdy  prayer,  the  confession  of  sin, 
the  deep  humility  of  heart,  with  which  alone  we 
can  approach  the  footstool  of  Jehovah  ?  It  is  not 
before  God's  throne  that  we  can  indulge  in  wrath  ; 
and  as  we  may  at  any  moment  be  called  to  die,  so 
we  ought  at  every  moment  to  be  fit  for  prayer. 
And  wrath  and  anger  are  especially  sinful  and  dis- 
pleasing in  a  woman,  as  gentleness  is  her  especial 
virtue.  "A  man,"  says  a  female  writer,  "in  a 
furious  passion,  is  terrible  to  his  enemies ;  but  a 
woman  in  a  passion  is  disgusting  to  her  friends ; 
she  loses  the  respect  due  to  her  sex,  and  she  has 
not  masculine  strength  and  courage  to  enforce  any 
other  species  of  respect." 

There  is  indeed  an  anger  which  is  not  sinful,  nor 
contrary  to  the  law  of  kindness  which  should  ever 
govern  a  woman's  tongue.  There  is  a  righteous 
indignation  against  sin  and  oppression,  which  we 
find  enjoined  in  Scripture  by  the  words,  "Be  ye 
angry,  and  sin  not,"  and  which  the  holy  apostles, 
and  even  our  Saviour  himself,  so  often  expressed 
wliile  on  earth.     Had  not  public  anger  been  shown 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  197 

against  slavery,  our  country  might  still  have  labored 
under  its  heavy  guilt,  and  our  fellow-creatures 
under  its  mighty  curse.  Against  this,  as  against 
other  national  and  individual  sins,  woman's  voice 
was  not  wanting  to  express  displeasure,  nor  was 
woman's  hand  slow  to  aid  the  great  philanthropists 
who  sought  its  extinction.  So,  in  private  life,  warm 
and  indignant  words  against  wrong  and  guilt,  so 
far  from  offending  God,  are  often  marked  by  his 
approbation,  as  proofs  of  that  deep  feeling  of  right, 
and  that  moral  courage,  for  which  the  holy  woman 
of  the  text  was  commended  by  the  pen  of  inspira- 
tion. 

The  apostle  James,  whose  epistle  contains  more 
admonitions  against  the  sins  of  the  tongue  than  can 
be  found  in  any  other  portion  of  Holy  Writ,  has 
said,  "  The  tongue  is  a  fire,  a  world  of  iniquity  : 
so  is  the  tongue  among  our  members,  that  it  defileth 
the  whole  body,  and  setteth  on  fire  the  course  of 
nature,  and  it  is  set  on  fire  of  hell."  0  !  beau- 
tiful on  woman's  lips  is  the  law  of  kindness,  turning 
away  wrath  by  a  soft  answer ;  bearing  with  the 
irritabilities  or  the  infirmities  of  others,  who  have 
had  fewer  advantages  in  early  training  ;  enforcing 


198  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

truth  with  gentleness  and  persuasion,  and  uttering 
that  love  which  is  described  by  St.  Paul  as  that 
which  "  beareth  all  things,  believeth  all  things, 
hopeth  all  things,  and  endureth  all  things." 

But  far  more  commonly,  among  women  in  gen- 
eral, is  the  law  of  kindness  violated  by  censorious- 
ness,  or  by  sarcastic  remark,  than  by  anger.  This 
sin  of  the  tongue  is  peculiar  to  neither  sex,  but  is 
one  which  prevails  to  a  great  extent  in  female 
society.  The  peculiar  faculties  of  women,  as  well 
as  their  habits,  make  this  an  offence  against  which 
they  ought  to  be  watchful.  In  them  exist  a  quick- 
ness of  perception  and  imagination,  and  conse- 
quently a  ready  sense  of  the  ludicrous  ;  and  these, 
combined  with  a  facility  of  speech,  a  power  of 
detail,  and  often  a  great  degree  of  leisure,  expose 
them  to  the  temptation  of  indulging  in  that  "  evil 
speaking"  which  God's  word  has  commanded  us  to 
put  far  away  from  us.  The  habit  of  censuring  the 
absent  has  much  in  it  which  ought  to  be  offensive 
to  every  generous  mind.  "  Thou  shalt  not  speak 
evil  of  the  deaf,"  is  one  of  the  commands  of  the 
law  of  Moses,  which  appeals  to  every  right  senti- 
ment ;  yet  the  same  principle  might  be    carried 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  199 

further,  and  lead  us  to  avoid  speaking  ill  of  the 
absent. 

Nor  is  censoriousness  chargeable  only  on  those 
who  strive  to  exaggerate  the  reports  of  evil  which 
they  may  have  heard,  or  who  put  on  them  the  worst 
possible  construction.  To  a  sin  like  this  surely 
Christian  women  cannot  be  addicted  ;  but  many, 
alas !  are  not  exempt  from  the  habit  of  dwelling, 
in  conversation,  on  the  actual  faults  and  follies  of 
others.  Few  seem  to  think  it  is  a  sin,  yet  it  is 
decidedly  opposed  to  the  law  of  kindness  that  should 
regulate  the  tongue.  It  is  a  practice,  too,  which 
increases  by  indulgence. 

It  may  begin  by  an  expression  of  displeasure 
against  vice,  but  soon  advances  to  a  watchfulness 
for  offences  in  others.  If  we  are  to  make  a  man 
an  offender  for  a  word,  if  we  are  to  watch  narrowly 
for  his  faults,  it  is  generally  easy  enough  to  find 
some  cause  of  censure.  In  many  things  we  offend 
all ;  and  few  indeed  are  they  who  can  be  found 
always  exempt  from  the  blame  of  censoriousness.  But 
when  we  are  speaking  of  the  faults  of  our  neighbor, 
we  are  sinning  against  love.  And  how  many  are 
the  reputations  which  have  been  injured  Vy  the 
14 


200  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

repetition  of  casual  remarks !  Well  might  the 
Hebrew  sage  declare,  that  "life  and  death  are  in 
the  power  of  the  tongue  ;"  for  unkind  remarks,  and 
unjust  suspicions,  have  sometimes  subjected  the 
sensitive  to  griefs  more  distressing  than  even  death 
itself. 

"  0  !  never,  never  let  us  fling 

The  barb  of  woe  to  wound  another ; 
0  !  never  let  us  haste  to  bring 
The  cup  of  sorrow  to  a  brother." 

And  who  are  they  who  are  foremost  to  detect  the 
faults  of  others,  and  to  judge  them  severely  ?  Cer- 
tainly not  those  who  have  watched  most  diligently 
over  their  own  hearts.  They  who  have  striven  and 
longed  most  for  conformity  to  the  law  of  God,  and 
to  the  example  of  the  Saviour,  know  best  how 
many  graces  need  diligent  cultivation,  how  many 
sins  need  to  be  subdued.  They  know,  too,  that 
often,  when  they  have  believed  that  some  sin  had 
been  conquered,  it  has,  in  an  unguarded  hour,  again 
given  them  sorrow,  and  again  they  have  had  to 
pray  for  help,  and  to  strive  against  it.  And  ever 
has  it  been  seen  that  the  best  and  holiest  are  the 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  201 

most  pitiful ;  and  that  they  who  have  the  law  of 
kindness  on  the  tongue  are  the  very  women  who 
are  most  likely  also  to  open  the  mouth  with  wis- 
dom, and  to  live  in  the  consistent  practice  of  every 
feminine  duty. 

And  the  sarcastic  reply,  too,  how  frequently  does 
it  wound  !  If  others  sin,  we  are  not  to  let  that  sin 
pass  unnoticed.  "  Thou  shalt  in  any  wise  rebuke 
thy  brother,  and  not  suffer  sin  upon  him."  But  in 
what  way  is  reproof  to  be  administered  ?  We  are 
told  to  rebuke  with  all  long-suffering  and  gentle- 
ness. Sin  is  a  deep  evil ;  it  is  not  to  be  spoken  of 
lightly,  nor  to  be  the  subject  of  a  bitter  jest.  It 
is  to  engage  our  earnest  expostulation.  The  apostle 
spoke,  even  weeping,  of  those  who  were  enemies 
to  the  cross  of  Christ ;  and  with  a  conviction  of 
our  sinful  nature,  and  our  dependence  on  the  grace 
of  God  for  safety,  we  are  to  reprove  others.  Sar- 
casm should  never  be  on  the  lip  of  a  Christian 
woman,  for  she,  indeed,  should  ever  be  found  with 
the  law  of  kindness  on  her  tongue.  If  bitterness 
is  in  the  word  of  reproof,  the  reprover  is  not  sinless  ; 
and  her  rebuke  does  not  originate  from  the  love  of 
God,  and  the  hatred  of  sin,  but  from  the  indulgence 
of  a  sinful  nature.     Pride  must  not  be  met  by 


202  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

pride  pride  in  others  is  never  cured  by  being 
mortified  and  insulted,  but  is  rather  increased  into 
hatred  and  revenge.  Wherefore,  putting  away  all 
wrath  and  malice,  and  evil  speaking,  "  be  kindly 
affectioned  one  to  another." 

The  law  of  kindness  is  often  broken,  also,  by 
haughty  words  spoken  to  inferiors,  wThen,  forgetful 
that  the  dependant  is  one  of  God's  large  family,  he 
is  addressed  as  a  stranger  and  an  alien.  The 
haughty  look  and  the  proud  heart  are  an  abomina- 
tion unto  the  Lord.  Pride  ever  proceeds,  too,  from 
an  ignorance  of  ourselves,  as  Wordsworth  has  said  : 

"  He  who  feels  contempt  for  any  living  thing 

Has  faculties  within  his  soul  which  he  has  never  used ; 
And  thought  with  him  is  in  its  infancy." 

Who  has  not  marked  the  mild  and  blessed  influ- 
ence of  her  on  whose  tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness  ? 
It  is  to  such  a  woman  that  the  little  child  comes  for 
direction.  It  is  to  such  that  the  sufferer  tells  his 
tale  of  sorrow,  in  full  certainty  of  that  ready  sym- 
pathy which  can  do  so  much  to  lessen  it ;  and 
whether  the  tale  be  that  of  bodily  pain,  or  of  the 
deeper  woe  of  mental  emotion ;  whether  it  be  of 
the  convinced  spirit  struggling  with  a  sense  of  sin, 


THE    PEACEFUL    WOMAN.  203 

and  with  only  a  vague  idea  of  the  possibility  of 
pardon,  or  perhaps  with  no  idea  at  all ;  or  whether 
it  be  some  temporary  cause  of  depression,  some 
worldly  loss,  or  some  unexpected  unkindness, — yet 
all  may  be  soothed  by  the  gentle  accents  of  compas- 
sion and  tenderness.  How  many  quarrels  are 
averted  by  the  mediation  and  counsel  of  such  a 
woman !  how  many  beginnings  of  strife  stopped  in 
their  progress  by  a  word  of  gentle  remonstrance  ! 
and  how  many  little  domestic  troubles  prevented  or 
met  by  her  kindly  warning  or  encouragement ! 
And  let  no  woman  say  that  she  cannot  acquire  a 
sweet  temper  ;  that  she  cannot  always  have  on  her 
lips  the  law  of  kindness.  She  may  be  naturally 
irritable,  and,  worse  still,  her  natural  irritability 
may  never  have  been  checked  by  the  restraining 
power  of  early  education  ;  but  there  is  a  deeper 
and  fuller  restraining  influence  than  even  that, — 
namely,  the  principle  of  love  to  God  ;  and  the  cul- 
tivation of  this  love  in  the  heart  wdll  lead  to  a 
prayer  for  holiness  of  heart  and  lip,  which  never 
goes  up  to  Heaven  unanswered,  and  to  a  constant 
and  earnest  striving  with  a  besetting  sin,  which 
God's  Holy  Spirit  will  aid  and  bless. 
14* 


204 


THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 


SECTION    XVIII. 


SUB  LOOKETH  WELL  TO  THE  WAYS  OF  HER  HOUSEHOLD,  AND 
EATETH  NOT  TnE  BREAD  OF  IDLENESS. 

NO  WING,  as  we  do,  the  great  influ- 
lence  which  family  training  has  on  the 
world  at  large,  we  cannot  wonder 
'that  he  who  divided  mankind  into 
families  should  so  commend  the  woman 
•  looked  well  to  the  ways  of  those  who 
*  compose  the  circle  which  she  superintends, 
constant  recognition  of  family  duties, 
)  emphatic  injunctions  that  women  should 
keepers  at  home,  and  love  their  husbands 
and  love  their  children,  all  lead  us  to  the 
remembrance  that  God  is  not  only  the  God  of  each 
individual,  but  that  he  is  indeed  the  God  of  all 
families.  It  was  the  praise  given  of  the  patriarch, 
by  Jehovah,  "  I  know  Abraham,  that  he  will  com- 
mand his  household  after  him."  Moses  reminded 
the  ancient  Hebrew  that  the  statutes  of  God  were 
not  for  himself  only,  but  that  "  they  were  for  his 
son's  son,  all  the  days  of  his  life  ;"  and  added  to  his 


27KI  WI1A  IP  TO  THE  WAYS 

f    HSR    M®H38IK1®ILB, 
M®    EATTETTK1    M©¥    THIS 


THE    DOMESTIC     WOMAN.  207 

command  the  assurance  "  that  it  may  be  well  with 
thee,  and  with  thy  children  after  thee."  The 
Great  Founder  of  human  families  knew  that  it  could 
be  well  with  the  people  in  general  only  in  propor- 
tion as  household  duty  and  religion  were  taught  and 
practised.  From  the  house,  the  quiet  hearth,  and 
the  peaceful  vine-arbor,  were  to  go  forth  those  who 
should  form  the  future  nation.  And  still  the  sena- 
tor and  the  philosopher,  the  philanthropist  and  the 
missionary,  go  from  the  house  of  youth  full  of  the 
sentiments  which  they  have  learned  there,  and  with 
their  habits  formed  on  the  model  of  home. 

There  is  something  so  endearing  in  the  ties  which 
weave  around  the  early  home,  that  every  human 
heart  feels  their  power.  The  gentle  words  of  a 
mother's  love,  the  counsels  of  a  father's  wisdom, 
how  do  they  return  with  freshness  and  vividness 
upon  the  spirit,  long  after  the  lips  which  uttered 
them  have  mingled  with  the  dust ;  and  are  awakened 
with  all  their  power  by  some  little  incident,  some 
casual  word,  the  sight  of  a  handwriting,  the  scent  of 
a  flower.  The  Rev.  James  Hamilton  records  the  nar- 
rative of  one  who  unexpectedly  joined  with  a  family 
in  the  solemn  service  of  family  prayer ;  one  who 


208  THE     EXCELLENT     WOMAN. 

had  wandered  from  God  and  truth,  yet  was  recalled 
to  religion  and  duty  by  this  circumstance.  And 
was  it  the  word  of  God,  as  uttered  in  that  prayer, 
which  subdued  the  proud  spirit  of  infidelity  ?  No  ! 
he  heard  it  not ;  his  heart  was  filled  with  the  remem- 
brances of  home.  He  thought  of  the  peaceful  hearth 
on  which  his  own  father  once  knelt,  and  commended 
to  God  his  surrounding  family.  All  the  guilt  which 
he  had  incurred  by  his  forgetfulness  of  the  prayers 
and  lessons  of  home  rushed  upon  his  spirit,  and  from 
that  hour  he  sought  the  God  of  his  fathers. 

And  who  has  never  felt  a  deep  emotion  at  the 
thought  of  the  home  of  his  youth  ?  The  child  at 
school  yearns  for  his  home  ;  the  sailor  on  the  deep 
is  full  of  thoughts  of  that  one  happy  spot  of  earth  ; 
and  when  the  angry  waves  threaten  his  bark,  his 
heart  swells  with  the  remembrance  of  home.  The 
prodigal  who  wilfully  left  that  home  is  often  led 
back  to  the  paths  of  virtue  and  religion,  as  some  of 
its  teachings  are  brought  to  his  mind.  And  the 
exile,  and  the  weary  wanderer,  —  is  not  home  to 
them  so  dear,  as  that  they  cannot  name  it  but  wTith 
a  trembling  breath  ?  and  as  the  moon  smiles  out  on 
the  scene  of  their  exile,  does  not  the  recollection 


THE    DOMESTIC    WOMAN.  209 

that  she  smiles  too  on  their  home  bow  down  even 
the  strong  man,  and  bring  tears  into  the  eyes  of 
those  who  are  little  used  to  weep  ?  And  the  wan- 
derer on  this  world's  wilderness,  who  has  found  that 
earth  has  no  home  for  him,  —  can  any  sweeter 
description  be  given  to  him,  or  one  which  speaks 
more  touchingly  to  his  heart  of  a  future  world,  than 
this,  "  There  remaineth  therefore  a  rest  to  the 
people  of  God," — a  home  never  to  change,  —  a 
mansion  that  passeth  not  away  ? 

When  God  gives  to  a  mother's  care  a  helpless 
child,  what  a  solemn  charge  does  the  mother  receive  ! 
A  being  born  for  eternity,  a  creature  destined  to 
everlasting  happiness  or  misery,  is  committed  to 
her,  and  its  future  character  and  destiny  in  great 
measure  dependent  on  her  instruction  and  example 
— its  eternal  condition  often  determined  by  the  hours 
spent  in  the  home  of  its  parents.  And  God  has 
given  great  encouragement  to  the  mother  who  looks 
well  to  the  ways  of  her  household ;  for  when  he 
says,  "  Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go," 
he  adds  the  promise,  "  and  when  he  is  old  he  will 
not  depart  from  it."  This  promise  has  often  been 
fulfilled  in  the  holy  and  useful  lives  of  those  whose 


210  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

home  has  proved  a  nursery  for  God.  And  though 
the  child  of  a  pious  mother  may  stray  in  youth  from 
the  ways  of  wisdom,  yet  often  he  returns  to  the  path 
of  truth  before  he  is  old.  And  when  we  see  the 
child  of  religious  parents  wandering  on  in  error  and 
vice,  and  at  last  dying  impenitent,  shall  we  con- 
clude that  the  promise  of  God  has  failed  ?  Alas  ! 
it  is  not  every  pious  mother  who  looks  well  to  the 
ways  of  her  household.  The  love  of  the  creature 
sometimes  overpowers  for  a  time  the  love  of  the 
Creator  ;  and,  as  in  the  case  of  the  sons  of  Eli,  the 
child  is  too  often  left  to  his  uncontrolled  passions, 
and  the  mother,  in  helpless  sorrow,  looks  on  the 
growth  of  vices  which  it  was  her  duty  to  check, 
and  drinks  at  last,  with  bitter  anguish,  the  cup 
which  her  own  mismanagement  and  indulgence 
had  filled.  She  can  value  and  keep  God's  wrord 
herself,  but  has  not  courage  to  command  her  chil- 
dren, or  to  make  them  obey. 

Nor  is  it  only  while  the  child  forms  one  of  his 
parents'  household,  that  there  is  a  danger  of  failing 
in  the  duty  of  training  him  rightly.  Many  a  pious 
parent  fulfils  to  the  children  under  his  roof  the  com- 
mand given  to  God's  ancient  people  when  Moses 


THE    DOMESTIC    WOMAN.  211 

said,  "These  words,  which  I  command  thee  this 
day,  shall  be  in  thine  heart ;  and  thou  shalt  teach 
them  diligently  unto  thy  children,  and  shalt  talk  of 
them  when  thou  sittest  in  thine  house,  and  when 
thou  walkest  by  the  way,  and  when  thou  liest  down, 
and  when  thou  risest  up."  But  ambition  and  the 
love  of  the  world,  which  seemed  to  have  been  stifled 
in  the  parent's  heart  for  himself,  are  sometimes 
awakened  for  his  child.  He  may  have  seemed  to 
learn  the  lesson  of  being  content  with  lowly  things, 
but  is  tempted  to  seek  great  things  for  his  children. 
How  often  do  we  see  this  when  a  child  is  sent  forth 
from  his  own  home  !  Some  school,  eminent  for  the 
learning  and  accomplishments  of  its  instructor,  is 
preferred  to  that  in  which  piety  forms  the  basis  of 
education.  Some  eligible  appointment  presents 
itself.  Some  means  of  increasing  riches,  some 
opportunity  of  forming  connections  which  may  be 
of  use  in  advancing  his  progress  in  the  world,  is 
offered ;  and  the  child,  trained  in  his  parents'  house- 
hold to  the  duties  of  religion  and  virtue,  is  sent  into 
the  world,  at  an  age  when  his  character  is  unformed, 
into  scenes  of  great  danger.  And  then  come  the 
bitter  consequences.     The  youth  forgets  the  coun 


212  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

sels  of  wisdom ;  he  stifles  the  voice  of  conscience  ; 
and  the  pleasures  of  the  world  allure  him.  Perhaps 
he  loses  his  morality,  or  even  if  his  outward  conduct 
remains  the  same,  yet  spiritual  religion  gradually 
loses  its  influence ;  and  the  very  mother  who  in 
early  life  looked  diligently  to  his  ways,  has  perhaps 
joined  her  efforts  in  sending  him  thus  unshielded 
into  the  world. 

The  looking  well  to  the  ways  of  her  household 
includes  also  the  care  of  domestic  servants  ;  and  the 
maidens  to  whom  the  Jewish  matron  gave  their  por- 
tion of  food  and  work  were  doubtless  guarded  from 
evil  by  her  watchful  prudence.  Some  mistresses 
appear  to  think  that  little  responsibility  attaches  to 
them  with  regard  to  servants,  and  that  so  long  as 
they  provide  them  with  home,  and  food,  and  wages, 
they  perforin  all  the  duty  required.  But  the  ways 
of  every  member  of  a  household  should  be  looked  to 
by  her  whom  Providence  has  placed  at  the  head  of 
a  family.  The  habits  of  life,  the  moral  and  religious 
character  of  each,  should  be  regarded  by  the  mis- 
tress ;  and  if  an  ignorant  servant  becomes  a  member 
of  a  household,  she  should  be  instructed.  It  is 
plainly  the  duty  of  all  to  lead  a  useful  life,  and  it  is 


THE    DOMESTIC    WOMAN.  213 

in  the  immediate  circle  that  we  are  to  commence 
our  labors.  The  mistress  of  a  family,  while  remem- 
bering that  her  own  advantages  of  training  may 
have  been  superior  to  those  placed  under  her  care, 
should  strive  that  every  servant  who  enters  her 
dwelling  should  be  benefited  during  her  residence 
there.  Especially  she  should  employ  the  means  of 
restraint  with  which  she  is  endowed  by  her  authority, 
to  prevent  any  irregularity  of  conduct,  and  the  prac- 
tice of  any  wrong  habits.  She  should  see  to  the 
ways  of  her  household,  by  taking  care  that  every 
one  composing  it  should  attend  to  the  means  of 
religion.  Time  and  opportunity  should  be  given  for 
serving  God.  Her  authority  should  keep  them  from 
scenes  of  vice  and  dissipation,  and  from  evil  com- 
pany ;  and,  in  forming  her  domestic  plans,  it  is  hers 
to  regulate  both  their  comfort  and  their  duty,  on  the 
broad  principle  of  Christian  benevolence  :  "  What- 
soever ye  would  that  others  should  do  unto  you,  do 
ye  also  unto  them." 

It  is  desirable  for  the  comfort  of  a  family,  and 
for  its  permanent  welfare,  that  the  servants  should 
be  rightly  directed  and  kindly  treated.     Such  con- 
duct meets  its  immediate  reward.      Children  are 
15 


214  THE  EXCELLENT  WOMAN. 

necessarily  influenced  by  them,  and  in  that  respect 
the  character  of  servants  is  most  important  to  every 
household.  In  every  family  in  which  they  are 
kept,  their  performance  of  duty  is  requisite  for 
order  and  comfort,  and  this  must  be  determined  by 
their  moral  character.  Their  willing  service,  and 
even  their  thoughtful  tenderness,  are  required  in 
the  hour  of  sickness,  and  their  sympathy  and  help 
is  sometimes  wanted  in  the  day  of  sorrow.  During 
that  awful  season  of  tragic  suffering  comprised  in 
the  French  revolution,  many  valuable  lives  were 
saved  by  the  attachment  of  confidential  servants ; 
and  that  period,  remarkable  for  the  exhibition  of 
some  of  the  deepest  crimes  and  some  of  the 
sweetest  virtues  of  human  nature,  presents  a  record 
of  devoted  men  and  maidens,  who  counted  not  even 
their  own  lives  dear  unto  them,  so  that  they  might 
rescue  from  danger  some  mistress  whose  former 
kindness  had  cheered  them,  or  some  helpless  child 
whom  they  once  had  carried  in  their  arms.  The 
history  of  the  church  of  God,  too,  could  present 
details  of  holy  and  useful  servants,  from  the  time 
when  Phoebe  was  a  servant  at  Cenchrea,  and  Onesi- 
mus  was  dear  to  the  apostle  Paul,  to  the  recent 


THE    DOMESTIC    WOMAN.  215 

days  when  the  Dairyman's  Daughter  performed  her 
humble  duties  with  exalted  faith  and  fervent  piety, 
till  her  spirit  sought  its  heavenly  home,  and  her 
frame  was  laid  in  its  lowly  grave. 

A  woman  so  well  taught  in  wisdom's  ways  as  the 
matron  of  the  text,  would  know  well  that  idleness 
leads  certainly  to  vice  and  sorrow.  Idleness  and 
fulness  of  bread  were  the  vices  mentioned  as 
exciting  God's  wrath  against  the  sinful  Sodom,  and 
were  doubtless  the  chief  means  of  fostering  all  its 
depravity.  It  is,  indeed,  the  source  of  a  thousand 
ills,  and  so  certain  a  cause  of  discomfort,  that 
happier  is  he  who  earns  his  bread  by  the  sweat  of 
his  brow,  than  he  who  spends  his  life  in  indolence. 
Cheerfulness  is  almost  the  necessary  result  of  mod- 
erate employment,  just  as  ennui  and  languor  are  the 
consequences  of  a  life  without  pursuit.  "  Idleness," 
says  old  Burton,  somewhat  quaintly,  "  is  the  badge 
of  gentry  ;  the  bane  of  body  and  mind ;  the  nurse 
of  naughtiness  ;  the  step-mother  of  discipline  ;  the 
chief  author  of  all  mischief ;  one  of  the  seven  deadly 
sins  ;  the  cushion  on  which  the  devil  chiefly 
reposes  ;  and  a  great  cause,  not  only  of  melancholy, 
but  of  many  other  diseases  ;  for  the  mind  is  natu- 


216  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

rally  active,  and  if  it  be  not  occupied  about  some 
honest  business,  it  rushes  into  mischief,  or  sinks  into 
melancholy." 

And  what  woman  would  wish  so  to  pass  her  life 
that  at  death  she  should  not  be  missed  ?  Of  how 
many  might  it  be  said  that  the  wTorld  and  the  home 
could  well  spare  them  ;  but  who  can  tell  the  worth 
of  a  life  spent  in  useful  occupation  ?  It  is  not  till 
the  seat  is  vacant  on  which  the  busy  matron  sat, —  it 
is  not  till  the  implements  of  industry  lie  by  unused, 
till  the  animating  voice  is  silent,  and  the  busy  hand 
is  still, —  that  we  fully  perceive  how  much  was  done 
hourly,  and  quietly,  and  surely,  in  the  well-regu- 
lated home.  From  many  such  a  hearth,  when  the 
mother  has  been  taken,  the  comfort  of  home  is  gone 
too  ;  and  ill-managed  children,  once  so  tenderly 
cared  for,  show  their  orphan  condition  to  every 
passer  by.  There  is  a  solemn  responsibility  attach- 
ing to  life, —  a  responsibility  only  to  be  met  by 
active  exertion ;  and  a  woe  is  denounced  against 
the  idle.  A  woman  who  looked  well  to  the  ways 
of  her  household  would  not  only  herself  avoid  eat- 
ing the  bread  of  idleness,  but  she  would  see  that 
each  one  had  a  suitable  engagement ;  and  every 


THE    DOMESTIC     WOMAN.  217 

one  who  is  the  mother  of  a  family  not  compelled  to 
work,  should  strive  to  interest  her  children  in  some 
one  employment  which  they  should  cultivate  with 
pleasure,  and  which  should  call  forth  their  latent 
energies.  Much  may  be  done  for  the  young,  by 
consulting  their  tastes,  and  encouraging  them  in 
some  pursuit ;  and  the  skill  to  select  this  does  not 
require  in  the  mother  so  much  talent,  as  the  exer- 
tion of  that  tact  which  is  so  common  to  women,  and 
which,  like  many  other  faculties,  is  rendered 
stronger  by  a  woman's  affection. 

One  of  the  first  aims  of  education  should  be  to 
promote  activity  of  mind  ;  and  the  acquisition  of  a 
taste  for  simple  and  unexpensive  pleasures  is,  in 
itself,  so  valuable  a  source  of  enjoyment,  that  it  is 
to  be  regretted  that  this  is  also  not  made  a  more 
usual  part  of  education.  On  this  account,  may  be 
recommended  the  study  of  the  various  departments 
of  natural  history  and  science.  It  may  seem  to 
matter  little,  indeed,  that  a  woman  should  be  a 
botanist,  or  an  entomologist,  though  all  would 
allow  that  these  pursuits  might  afford  much  pleas- 
ure ;  but  the  activity  of  mind,  and  the  power  of 
application  and  observation,  which  such  a  study  will 
15* 


218  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

awaken,  is  of  incalculable  worth.  Plutarch  said 
that  a  woman  who  studied  geometry  would  not  be 
fond  of  dancing ;  and  we  may  add,  that  a  woman 
who  feels  interested  in  studies  of  this  nature  will 
neither  be  frivolous  nor  idle. 

But  it  is  only  to  the  few  that  the  choice  of  the 
pursuits  of  life  is  left.  The  many  are  called  to 
work  in  this  anxious,  toiling  world,  and  thousands 
are  sighing  for  that  leisure  which  others  waste  so 
carelessly.  But  has  active  and  regular  employment 
no  advantages  ?  Does  not  the  heart  fill  with 
pleasure,  when  the  eye  marks  the  fruit  of  exertion ; 
and  does  not  the  hour  of  occasional  recreation 
bring  with  it  far  more  of  enjoyment,  and  is  it  not 
fuller  of  life,  than  is  the  day  of  indolence  to  the 
unemployed  ?  Above  all,  is  not  the  busy  man  or 
woman  living  the  life  which  God  has  ordained  ?  His 
own  word  has  said,  "  If  any  will  not  work,  neither 
shall  he  eat."  The  ancient  Hebrews  had  all  their 
occupations.  The  rich  and  the  poor  were  alike 
taught  in  the  knowledge  of  some  business,  by  which 
they  might  labor  with  hand  or  head  ;  nor  did  rank 
or  station  exempt  any  from  useful  toil.  And  the 
result  of  this  industry  was  a  thoughtful  and  provi- 


THE    DOMESTIC    WOMAN.  219 

dent  people  ;  a  nation  standing  out  from  oriental 
nations  generally,  as  marked  by  an  energy  and 
force  of  character,  much  of  which  has  descended  to 
the  modern  Jew,  under  all  the  varied  circumstances 
of  place  and  time. 

In  the  consideration  of  the  Christian  graces,  one 
cannot  help  remarking  that  they  are  all  active. 
Piety  is  not  to  consist  in  quiet  contemplation,  but 
in  active  duty.  If  we  read  in  the  Scripture  of 
love,  then  there  is  the  labor  of  love  ;  and  every 
kind  heart  knows  the  truth  of  the  proverb,  that  love 
can  make  labor  light.  If  we  read  of  faith,  it  is 
of  an  active  faith, —  a  work  of  faith, —  a  faith  which 
overcometh  the  world.  If  of  hope,  then  is  it  a  hope 
powerful  enough  to  expel  sin,  since  he  who  hath 
this  hope  purifieth  himself,  even  as  God  is  pure. 
Holy  principle  must  lead  to  holy  practice  ;  and  the 
woman  who,  while  professing  to  serve  God,  neglects 
the  duty  of  caring  for  her  household,  dishonors  her 
Christian  profession,  and  brings  disgrace  upon  God's 
cause.  Even  the  Great  Creator  of  the  universe 
himself  is  represented  as  active.  Our  Saviour 
remarked,  "My  Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I 
work."     Our  blessed  Lord  lived  a  life  of  unwearied 


220  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

labor  in  the  cause  of  man.  The  angels,  too,  are 
represented  as  employed,  not  only  in  tuning  their 
harps  of  gold  and  singing  the  songs  of  the  celestial 
city,  but  as  winging  their  way  to  this  world  on 
ministries  of  love  ;  and  who  shall  say  how  much 
they  who  shall  be  heirs  of  salvation  are  indebted  to 
their  guardian  care  ? 

"  Where  burns  the  loved  hearth  brightest, 

Cheering  the  social  breast  ? 
Where  beats  the  fond  heart  lightest, 

Its  humble  hopes  possessed  ? 
Where  is  the  smile  of  sadness, 

Of  meek-eyed  patience  born, 
Worth  more  than  those  of  gladness, 

Which  mirth's  bright  cheek  adorn  ? 
Pleasure  is  marked  by  fleetness 

To  those  who  ever  roam, 
While  grief  itself  has  sweetness 

At  Home,  dear  Home  !  " 


©H3LBJ3EM    A3U8S    UP, 
AK1B   ©ALL    MSB   ISLlSSSEJj 
MSR    H5il8IBAM®    AL8@, 

>3E    PRAISrTM    MER.         *J' 


THE    COMMENDED    WOMAN.  223 


SECTION  XIX. 

HER   CHILDREN    ARISE   UP,    AND    CALL   HER   BLESSED:    HER   HUSBAND 
ALSO,    AND   HE   PRAISETH    HER. 

ERY   probably   the    expression    of 
rising  up  to  bless  the  parent  may 
have  some  allusion   to  the   eastern 
practice  of  rising  and  bowing  to  the 
'ground  before  the  head  of  the  family, 
as  this  mode  of  reverence  is  very  general. 
Yet  it  will  bear  the  meaning  in  which  it 
1  would  be  taken  in  our  land,  —  that  the 
children  rise  from  infancy  to  childhood, 
land  on  to  youth  and  manhood,  with  hearts 
full  of  affection,  and  grateful  recollections  of 
the  worth  of  an  excellent  mother. 

It  has  been  said  that  home  praise  is  the  truest 
praise  ;  and  it  is  certain  we  can  be  known  by  none 
so  well  as  by  those  who  surround  the  family  hearth. 
A  far  higher  virtue  and  more  consistent  excellence 
belongs  to  her  of  whom  all  her  household  can  speak 
well,  than  to  those  who  can  shine  only  in  company, 
and  who  require  but  the  charms  of  politeness  and 


224  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

the  graces  of  conversation  to  gain  approval.  And 
how  pleasant  is  it  to  hear  the  blessings  bestowed  by 
the  child  on  the  name  of  the  good  mother !  Who 
shall  tell  the  hours  of  anxiety,  the  words  of  care 
and  tenderness,  which  such  a  mother  has  bestowed 
on  his  infancy ;  the  sleepless  nights,  and  careful 
days,  and  all  the  maternal  solicitudes,  which  shielded 
from  harm  his  childhood  and  early  youth ;  and  which, 
as  he  grew  older,  changed  their  mode  of  expression, 
but  never  lost  sight  of  their  object  ?  Truly  did 
Gray  say,  "  We  can  never  have  but  one  mother." 
No  love,  not  even  the  tenderest,  can  equal  hers ; 
for  she  will  love  on,  though  sickness  should  wither 
the  flower  and  turn  all  its  beauty  into  decay  ;  and 
fix  her  firmest  and  deepest  affection  on  that  one  of 
her  children  who  has  least  of  outward  grace  and 
loveliness.  Her  love,  unlike  all  others,  can  with- 
stand neglect,  and  ingratitude,  and  forgetfulness. 
The  prodigal  son  may  stray  from  his  home,  and  the 
world  may  frown  on  him,  and  frown  justly  ;  and  all 
the  love  of  neighbors,  or  of  friends,  or  even  of 
brother  or  sister,  may  have  been  worn  out  by  his  folly 
and  wickedness ;  yet  is  there  a  stream  of  love  in 
the  mother's  heart,  ever  fresh  and  ever  living ;  he  is 


THE    COMMENDED    WOMAN.  225 

still  her  own  loved  son  ;  and  one  word  of  penitence, 
one  look  of  sorrow,  will  win  forgiveness  for  a  life  of 
unkindness.  The  love  of  a  mother  is  like  the  bounty 
of  God,  who  "  causeth  his  sun  to  rise  on  the  evil 
and  on  the  good,  and  sendeth  rain  on  the  just  and 
on  the  unjust." 

It  is,  indeed,  a  sure  proof  of  their  excellent  edu- 
cation, when  all  the  children  of  a  family  can  arise 
and  call  their  mother  blessed.  And  when  all  are 
gathered  in  the  circle  of  love,  such  a  home  presents 
the  loveliest  scene  on  earth. 

M  Domestic  Happiness,  thou  only  bliss 
Of  Paradise  that  has  survived  the  fall ! 
Though  few  now  taste  thee,  unimpaired  and  pure ; 
Or,  tasting,  long  enjoy  thee ;  too  infirm 
Or  too  incautious  to  preserve  thy  sweets 
Unmixed  with  drops  of  bitter,  which  neglect 
Or  temper  sheds  into  thy  crystal  cup. 
Thou  art  the  nurse  of  Virtue  ;  —  in  thine  arms 
She  smiles,  appearing,  as  in  truth  she  is, 
Heaven-born,  and  destined  to  the  skies  again." 

When  the  law  was  given  from  Mount  Sinai  to 
ancient  Israel,  we  find  included  in  it  not  only  the 
reverence  of  the  father,  but  "  Thou  shalt  honor  thy 


226  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

father  and  thy  mother,"  was  its  direct  injunction. 
It  would  be  from  the  lip  of  his  mother  that  the 
Jewish  child  would  learn  his  most  sacred  lessons. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  the  young  Israelite  had 
no  school  but  his  home.  He  was  not  sent  away 
from  the  paternal  roof  to  gather  learning  ;  but  under 
its  happy  shadow  he  learned,  from  his  parents'  lips, 
his  knowledge  of  business,  of  life  and  duty,  and 
became  early  familiar  with  the  law  of  God.  He 
had  not,  perhaps,  even  his  smaller  Bible  to  refer  to, 
but  this  law  was  taught  in  the  house  when  the  family 
met  together  ;  it  was  written  up  upon  the  gates  of 
the  city,  and  read  aloud  by  the  priests  and  Levites 
to  assembled  multitudes.  It  does  not  seem  that, 
previous  to  the  Babylonish  captivity,  the  ancient 
Israelites  had  schools,  save  those  for  the  "  sons 
of  the  prophets," — the  pious  youths  who  were 
destined  to  be  teachers  in  Israel ; — but  many  a 
mother's  tongue  could  tell  of  Israel's  Hope,  the 
glorious  Messiah,  the  Prince  of  the  people,  for 
whom  every  devout  Israelite  was  hoping  and  look- 
ing ;  and  for  whose  advent  the  Hebrew  matron  was 
so  anxious,  that  she  grieved  if  she  was  childless, 
because  she  hoped  that  from  her  house  might  spring 


THE    COMMENDED    WOMAN.  227 

forth  the  "  Prophet  like  unto  Moses."  Guided  by 
his  mother's  hand,  the  Jewish  child  went  to  the 
temple,  which  God  had  chosen.  From  her  lip  he 
learned  the  meaning  of  those  yearly  festivals,  when 
every  male  among  the  Jews  appeared  in  Jerusalem, 
the  holy  city  ;  and  when,  in  after  times,  they  sang, 
as  they  went  up,  that  beautiful  Psalm,  — "  I  was 
glad  when  they  said  unto  me,  Let  us  go  into  the 
house  of  the  Lord.  Our  feet  shall  stand  within  thy 
gates,  0  Jerusalem.  Jerusalem  is  builded  as  a  city 
that  is  compact  together  :  whither  the  tribes  go  up, 
the  tribes  of  the  Lord,  unto  the  testimony  of  Israel, 
to  give  thanks  unto  the  name  of  the  Lord."  And 
thus  the  pious  Hebrew  mother  would  weave  with 
her  child's  earliest  impressions  a  store  of  associations 
to  bless  his  after  years.  0  that  every  mother  in 
our  own  land  would  make  her  home  a  nursery  for 
God  ;  and  teach  such  Christian  principle,  and  enjoin 
such  Christian  practice,  as  would  fully  insure  her 
children's  love  !  Then  of  every  American  mother 
might  it  be  said,  "Her  children  arise  up,  and  call 
her  blessed." 

The  husband  of  the  excellent  woman  is  repre- 
sented as  adding  his  praise  to  that  of  the  younger 
16 


228  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

members  of  the  family.  He  could  indeed  point  to 
her  example  for  their  imitation.  He  could  praise 
her,  not  alone  for  the  comfort  which  her  useful 
energy  cast  throughout  his  home,  but  for  the  sweet- 
ness which  her  gentleness  and  goodness  brought 
into  it,  and  which  rendered  it  so  attractive.  He 
could  tell  of  enjoyment  provided  by  her  industry  ; 
of  anxieties  prevented  by  her  caution ;  of  sorrows 
lightened  by  her  sympathy  ;  and  could  perhaps  look 
around  on  children  walking  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord, 
who  learned  that  fear  from  the  teaching  of  their 
mother. 

"  0,  say  to  mothers  what  a  holy  charge 
Is  theirs ! — with  what  a  kingly  power  their  love 
Might  rule  the  fountain  of  the  new-born  mind ! 
Warn  them  to  wake  at  early  dawn,  and  sow 
Good  seed  before  the  world  hath  sown  her  tares ; 
Nor  in  their  toil  decline,  that  angel  bands 
May  put  their  sickle  in,  and  reap  for  God, 
And  gather  to  his  garner." 


0      <r,  en  Of-pcp 


THE    PRE-EMINENT    WOMAN. 


231 


SECTION    XX. 


MANY   DAUGHTERS   HAVE   DONE   VIRTUOUSLY,   BUT    THOU    EXCELLEST 
THEM   ALL. 

TJDGING  from  probabilities,  we 
can  hardly  suppose  that  this  high 
commendation  is  intended  to  be 
taken  by  the  inspired  writer  as 
5^ the  praise  given  by  God  to  the  Jewish 
matron.  Commentators  generally 
prefer  it  to  the  warm  expression  of-affec- 
fc  tion  and  esteem  uttered  either  by  her 
husband  or  children,  on  a  review  of  her 
consistent  and  valuable  life.  Nor  was  this 
expression  of  an  overflowing  affection  with- 
out justice  or  truth ;  for  one  who  acted  so  well 
would  far  exceed  in  virtue  the  generality  of 
wives  and  mothers,  and  would  probably  be  superior 
in  worth  to  any  woman  known  by  those  who  praised 
her.  The  Septuagint,  Syriac,  and  other  versions, 
render  this  passage,  "  Many  daughters  have  gath- 
ered riches  ;"  and  as  industry  seems  to  have  been  a 
ruling  feature  in  the  character  of  Hebrew  women 


232  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

generally  at  this  early  period,  this  rendering  would 
not  be  unsuitable.  In  such  ease,  the  praise  would 
extend  not  only  to  the  number  of  garments  which 
she  had  wrought  for  merchandise,  but  to  her  skill 
in  acquiring  property,  and  her  care  in  preventing 
an  unnecessary  expenditure  of  wealth. 

But  although  so  finished  a  degree  of  excellence 
as  that  recorded  in  this  beautiful  poem  must,  at 
any  period  of  this  world's  history,  have  been  a  rare 
attainment,  yet  a  great  degree  of  loveliness  and 
virtue  marked  many  of  the  women  of  early  days. 
To  all  the  mental  vigor,  and  industry,  and  noble 
sentiments,  which  belong  to  the  matron  of  ancient 
Rome,  the  Jewish  female  seems  to  have  added  a 
warm,  enthusiastic,  and  gentle  tenderness,  which 
renders  her  lovelier  than  the  sterner  Roman  lady  ; 
and  which,  while  it  commands  our  respect,  wins  a 
deeper  and  warmer  love.  Nor  was  the  Hebrew 
woman  wanting  in  that  clear  intellect,  or  versatility 
of  talent,  which  fitted  her  for  rivalling  the  Grecian 
dame  in  the  lighter  and  more  graceful  accomplish- 
ments of  life.  The  commands  of  Moses,  the 
writings  of  the  prophets, — nay,  the  very  history  of 
the  creation  of  the  world,  on  which  the  eye  of  the 


THE    PRE-EMINENT     WOMAN.  233 

ancient  Israelite  pondered, —  all  taught  that  woman 
was  not  intended  for  the  slave  of  man.  Recognizing 
the  woman  as  an  immortal  being,  providing  for  her 
protection  and  comfort,  giving  to  her,  as  to  her 
husband,  the  assurances  of  God's  favor  and  the 
hopes  of  a  future  life,  presenting  her  to  the  Hebrew 
as  the  mother  of  the  coming  Messiah,  the  Jewish 
woman  was  raised  above  that  degradation  to  which 
the  oriental  female  was  subjected  ;  and  still,  even 
in  Asia,  enjoys  a  freedom  and  an  importance 
unknown  among  other  Asiatics.  "The  singular 
beauty  of  the  Hebrew  women,"  says  an  interesting 
writer,  "  and  the  natural  warmth  of  their  affections, 
have  conspired  to  throw  gems  of  domestic  loveli- 
ness over  the  pages  of  the  Bible.  In  no  history 
can  there  be  found  a  greater  number  of  charming 
female  portraits.  From  Hagar,  down  to  Mary  and 
Martha,  the  Bible  presents  pictures  of  womanly 
beauty  that  are  unsurpassed  and  rarely  paralleled. 
But  we  should  very  imperfectly  represent,  in  these 
general  remarks,  the  formative  influence  of  the 
female  character  as  seen  in  the  Bible,  did  we  not 
refer  these  amiable  traits  of  character  to  the  original 
conceptions  of  which  we  have  spoken,  and  to  the 
16* 


234  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

pure  and  lofty  religious  ideas  which  the  American 
books  in  general  present.  If  woman,  then,  appears 
as  the  companion  and  friend  of  man,  if  she  rises  to 
that  noble  position  which  is  held  by  the  mother  of  a 
family,  she  owes  her  elevation  in  the  main  to  the 
religion  of  Moses  and  to  that  of  Jesus.  The  first 
system,  as  a  preparatory  one,  did  not,  and  could  not, 
complete  the  emancipation  of  woman."  Let  Ameri- 
can females  remember  what  Christianity  has  done  for 
them,  and  that  their  responsibility  is  consequently 
greatly  increased. 

"  Charms  there  may  be,  that  waken  admiration 
When  first  beheld,  that  have  no  dwelling-place 
On  memory's  tablet ;  while  on  it  we  trace 
Features  less  perfect,  and  less  marked  at  first, 
But  made  indelible  by  softer  grace  ; 
Too  unobtrusive  all  at  once  to  burst 
Upon  the  gazer's  soul,  —  once  known,  forever  nursed 
With  cherished  fondness,  for  the  much-loved  sake 
Of  purest  happiness,  which  these  alone 
Have  had  the  power  within  our  hearts  to  wake, 
By  witchery  peculiarly  their  own." 


ft  W©]»A58  VHftT  PIARtTM  TM1 

L9XD,  SKIS  SHALL  BI  PXA18JCB. 


THE    GODLY    WOMAN, 


237 


SECTION  XXI. 

FAVOR   IS   DECEITFUL,    AND   BEAUTY   18   VAIN  J    BUT   A   WOMAN   THAT 
FEARETH   THE   LORD,    SHE   SHALL   BE   PRAISED. 

ITTLE  do  we  need  a  revelation  to 
tell  us  that  worldly  favor  is  vain 
indeed :  experience  of  the  world 
attests  it ;  and  the  philosopher,  and, 
still  more  frequently,  the  poet,  have 
again  and  again  lamented  the  worthless- 
ness  of  the  favor  of  this  world.  For  a 
little  while,  the  man  who  rises  in  general 
favor  is  loved  and  honored,  his  presence 
welcomed,  his  opinion  valued  ;  but  soon  some 
new  favorite  takes  his  place,  and  general 
adulation  is  directed  to  the  rising  sun.  How  many 
have  sickened,  as  they  told  how  in  hours  of  pros- 
perity the  smile  of  the  rich  and  the  praise  of  the 
young  and  gay  were  given  for  a  season  ;  and  then, 
as  some  new  mood  came  over  the  public  mind,  they 
were  left  to  die  in  poverty ;  while  they  who  once 
sought  their  society  looked  at  them  now  with  cold 
indifference,  and  passed  by  them  as  strangers. 


238  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

But  the  instability  of  worldly  favor  is  not  con- 
fined to  public  praise  ;  for,  in  the  more  private 
circles  of  fashionable  life,  it  is  equally  deceitful. 
'Favor  is  given  to  a  woman  because  she  is  rich,  or 
beautiful,  or  elegant.  She  is  praised  and  admired, 
and  learns  to  take  such  admiration  as  her  right ; 
and  she  finds  it  a  true  proverb,  that  "  Men  will 
praise  thee  when  thou  doest  well  to  thyself."  But 
poverty  comes  suddenly,  even  as  an  armed  man  ; 
sickness  overtakes  her,  and  all  her  beauty  fades  like 
that  of  the  flower  of  the  field  ;  and  the  graces, 
which  gave  life  and  spirit  to  the  gay  assembly,  are 
gone  forever.  Then  she  can  add  hers  to  the  sad 
testimony  of  the  poet  * 

"  The  friends  who  in  our  sunshine  live, 
When  winter  comes  are  flown ; 
And  she  who  hath  but  tears  to  give, 
Must  weep  those  tears  alone." 

How  frequently  does  the  young  and  trusting 
heart  swell  with  emotion,  on  the  discovery  of  the 
deceitful  nature  of  worldly  favor  !  "  The  greetings 
where  no  kindness  is  "  are  taken  by  the  truthful  as 
truth  itself ;  and  when  they  change  to  coldness  or 


THE    GODLY    WOMAN.  239 

contempt,  the  ardent  spirit  shrinks  beneath  them, 
as  the  lily  withers  when  the  sunshine  of  heaven 
changes  to  the  chill  north  wind.  And  the  young, 
having  no  hope  of  God's  favor,  or  of  happiness  in 
the  world  to  come,  exchange  for  a  misanthropic 
and  ungentle  spirit  the  trusting  affection  of  an  ingen- 
uous mind,  and  become  like  the  cold  and  worldly 
beings  whose  deceitful  favor  once  misled  them. 

Perhaps  there  is  scarcely  a  woman  who  has  not 
listened  to  the  voice  of  flattery  ;  and  though  the 
coarse  praise  of  a  flattering  tongue  would  disgust 
the  pious,  and  displease  too  the  cultivated  and 
refined,  yet  most  have  been  sometimes  beguiled 
by  its  more  delicate  and  skilful  application.  There 
is  a  self-love  in  every  human  heart  to  which  such 
praise  can  appeal ;  and  even  the  woman  who  knows 
the  commendation  to  be  undeserved  will  sometimes 
be  pleased,  as  she  believes  that  such  at  least  is  the 
opinion  of  those  who  utter  it.  But  time  comes, 
and  truth  comes  with  him,  and  with  rude  hand  tears 
away  the  veil  from  falsehood,  and  the  deceived 
spirit  learns  at  length  the  lesson  that  favor  is 
deceitful. 

And  is  Christian  intercourse  altogether  free  from 


240  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

this  deceitfulness  ?  Are  there  not  prevalent,  in 
Christian  society,  words  and  practices  which  express 
far  more  than  the  heart  can  respond  to  ?  To  the 
courtesies  of  life  no  Christian  should  be  indifferent. 
If  the  wTorldly  woman  learns,  from  the  politeness  of 
the  world,  to  prefer  the  comfort  of  others  to  her 
own, —  if  she  must  make  sacrifices  of  feeling,  that 
in  society  she  may  appear  kind  and  polite, —  how 
much  more  should  Christian  women  practise  a  gen- 
tle courtesy  of  manner,  from  the  consideration  that 
even  Christ  pleased  not  himself.  "Be  ye  kind,  be 
ye  courteous,"  is  the  injunction  of  a  holy  apostle  ; 
and  all  rudeness  and  incivility  should  be  shunned 
by  every  woman  professing  to  have  been  taught  of 
God. 

On  the  other  hand,  is  not  the  favor  of  that  woman 
deceitful,  who  stretches  out  the  hand  of  kindness  to 
her  acquaintance,  who  welcomes  her  to  her  house, 
and  listens  with  apparent  sympathy  to  the  expres- 
sion of  her  feelings, —  and  who  will,  on  her  absence, 
recount  her  faults  or  ridicule  her  follies  ?  0  that 
all  Christian  women  were  wholly  free  from  this 
portion  of  worldly  false-heartedness,  this  conformity 
to  worldly  favor ;  and  were  ever  sincere  and  candid 


THE    GODLY    WOMAN.  241 

in  their  expressions  of  friendship !  On  them,  at 
least,  let  the  trusting  heart  lean,  in  full  assurance 
that  the  love  which  is  uttered  is  the  love  which  is 
felt. 

But  while  we  must  admit  that,  even  in  Christian 
intercourse,  much  imperfection  exists,  and  the 
spirit  of  the  world  sometimes  darkens  the  brighter 
lustre  of  the  Christian  character,  yet  it  has  ever 
been  the  lot  of  the  sorrowful  and  desolate  to  find 
compassion  and  sincerity  nowhere  so  fully  developed 
as  in  the  circle  of  those  who  are  the  real  followers 
of  Christ.  The  woman  who  sincerely  fears  the 
Lord,  who  lives  nearest  to  him,  will  be,  too,  the 
truest  and  best  of  earthly  friends  ;  and  when  David 
said,  "  I  am  a  companion  of  all  them  that  fear 
thee,"  he  could  number  among  those  servants  of 
God  the  faithful  friends  of  his  hours  of  adversity  ; 
and  he  could  think  of  the  pleasant  Jonathan,  and 
the  liberal  Barzillai,  and  the  faithful  Nathan, — men 
who  never  forsook  him  when  sorrow  came,  whose 
favor  was  never  deceitful ;  but  who  loved  him  best 
when  most  he  needed  their  friendship,  because  their 
love  was  strengthened  by  their  fear  and  love  of  God. 

And  are  not  the  favor  and  love  of  God  unchang- 
ing ?     He  has  said,  "  Call  upon  me  in  the  day  of 


242  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

trouble  ;"  he  has  bid  us,  when  earthly  favor  has 
proved  deceitful,  to  bring  the  worn  and  weary  spirit 
to  him  for  refuge.  And  no  one  ever  sought  him  in 
vain,  or  had  reason  to  regret  that  he  had  cast  all 
his  care  on  the  loving-kindness  of  an  unchanging 
God. 

We  have  not  need  to  look  for  to  see  the  passing 
nature,  the  vanity,  of  personal  beauty  : 

"  For  not  a  year  but  pilfers,  as  it  goes, 
Some  youthful  grace  that  age  would  gladly  keep :  " 

and  time  brings  assuredly  his  wrinkles  to  furrow  the 
fairest  countenance.  Sudden  or  prolonged  sickness 
changes  the  rose  on  the  cheek  to  paleness,  and  dims 
the  eye  whose  brightness  told  a  tale  of  health  and 
gladness  ;  for  when  God  with  rebukes  doth  chasten 
for  iniquity,  he  maketh  beauty  to  pass  away  like  a 
moth ;  so  that  all,  even  in  their  best  states,  are 
altogether  vanity.  But  the  frailty  of  beauty  is  most 
apparent  when  we  look  on  death, — on  that  change 
which  all  must  encounter.  "It  is,"  says  Jeremy 
Taylor,  "a  mighty  change  that  is  made  by  the 
death  of  every  person,  and  it  is  visible  to  us  who 
are  alive.     Reckon  but  from  the  sprightfulness  of 


THE     GODLY    WOMAN.  243 

youth,  and  the  fair  cheeks  and  the  full  eyes  of 
childhood ;  from  the  vigorousness  and  strong  flex- 
ure of  the  joints  of  five-and-twenty,  to  the  hollow- 
ness  and  dead  paleness,  to  the  loathsomeness  and 
horror,  of  a  three  days'  burial,  and  he  shall  perceive 
the  distance  to  be  very  great  and  very  strange." 

"0,  what  is  beauty's  power  ? 

It  perishes  and  dies. 
Shall  the  cold  earth  its  silence  break, 
To  tell  how  soft  and  smooth  a  cheek 
Beneath  its  surface  lies  ? 
Mute,  mute  is  all, 
O'er  beauty's  fall ; 
Her  praise  resounds  no  more  when  mantled  in  her  pall." 

"  But  a  woman  that  feareth  the  Lord,  she  shall 
be  praised."  Such  a  woman  would  have  praise  of 
God.  The  ornament  of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit  is 
of  great  price,  and  to  the  true  believer  in  Christ 
God  will  say,  at  the  great  day,  "  Well  done,  good 
and  faithful  servant ;  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy 
Lord."  And,  0  !  what  praise  can  equal  this  ? 
Men  may  praise  those  whom  God  disapproves. 
They  may  hold  that  to  be  good  which  God  abhors  ; 
and  even  when  they  have  the  right  standard  of 
17 


244  THE    EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

holiness,  yet  they  may  so  little  know  the  hearts  of 
others  as  to  mistake  in  their  estimate  of  good  and 
evil.  On  whom  is  the*  praise  of  men  bestowed  ? 
On  those  who  conquer  kingdoms,  who  perform  great 
exploits  in  discovery  and  science,  who  make  high 
attainments  in  knowledge,  or  who  clothe  in  lofty 
verse  thoughts  of  beauty  and  genius.  And  who 
will  deny  his  meed  of  praise  to  the  philosopher  or 
the  poet  ?  We  owe  them  so  much,  that  we  could 
not  pluck  a  leaf  from  the  laurel  or  the  bay,  without 
ingratitude.  Yet,  in  all  their  thoughts  of  sublimity 
or  tenderness,  there  may  be  no  fear  of  God  ;  he  may 
not  be  pleased.  "  To  that  man  will  I  look,"  saith 
Jehovah,  "  who  is  of  an  humble  and  contrite  heart, 
and  who  trembleth  at  my  word."  The  humble  and 
lowly  Christian,  performing  the  simplest  and  com- 
monest duties  of  domestic  life  in  his  fear  ;  seeking 
his  counsel,  and  earnestly  striving  to  keep  his  com- 
mands ;  praying  for  the  guidance  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  confidently  trusting  for  the  pardon  of  her  sin  in 
him  who  died  on  the  cross  to  redeem  her, — this  is 
the  woman  on  whom  shall  be  bestowed  that  best, 
that  only  praise  which  is  truly  valuable  ;  for  of  her 
the  Lord  himself  shall  say,  "  She  hath  chosen  that 
good  part,  which  shall  not  be  taken  away  from  her." 


inTJj  wss  ■&?  vn»  rstvrr  ©?  mb 

S3®8P    &W®    LIT   HIS   ©V7M   WOJ2K.S     |l 
FBJMSE  K1I1S   m  TOE  GATIS. 


THE    REWARDED    WOMAN. 


247 


SECTION    XXII. 

GIVE  HER   OF    THE    FRUIT    OF    HER    HANDS-}    AND    LET    HER    OWN 
WORKS   PRAISE   HER    IN    THE   GATES. 

UESTIONS  have  been  raised  whether 
this  passage  is  a  continuation  of  the 
praise  bestowed  on  this  excellent 
matron  by  her  husband,  or  whether 
it  may  not  be  regarded  as  a  prayer 
offered  up  on  her  behalf.  We  have 
spoken  of  the  gate  as  the  place  of  assem- 
bly and  of  commerce,  where  the  fruits 
of  her  industry  would  be  known  and  appre- 
ciated, and  where  men  would  speak  of  her 
virtues ;  where  she  would  be  mentioned  as 
a  great  example  of  female  excellence,  and  her  deeds 
of  mercy  and  her  unblamable  life  would  characterize 
her  as  a  mother  in  Israel,  and  a  devout  and  humble 
•servant  of  the  great  Jehovah. 

Although  a  life  of  consistent  virtue  generally 
brings  its  own  reward  in  the  esteem  of  those  whose 
good  opinion  is  truly  valuable,  and  though  the  hand 
of  the  diligent  usually,   in  some   degree,  maketh 


248  THE     EXCELLENT    WOMAN. 

rich,  yet  it  is  not  always  in  this  world  that  the  good 
receive  of  the  fruit  of  their  hands.  But  there  is  a 
world  on  which  the  holy  women  of  old  have  long 
since  entered,  — a  world  to  which  we  are  all  hasten- 
ing,— when  every  one  shall  receive  according  to  the 
deeds  done  in  the  body,  whether  they  be  good,  or 
whether  they  be  evil.  We  cannot  be  saved  by  an 
exemplary  and  virtuous  life ;  for  never  yet  was  there 
a  human  being  who  lived  and  sinned  not ;  and  the 
holiest  action  ever  performed  by  sinful  man  had  yet 
mingled  with  it  so  much  infirmity  of  motive,  that 
it  needed  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ  to  render  it 
acceptable  in  the  eyes  of  an  infinitely  holy  God. 
But  Christian  principle,  though  it  will  not  enable 
us,  while  in  this  world,  to  offer  a  perfect  obedience, 
will  certainly  be  accompanied  by  the  practice  of 
holiness,  an  earnest  endeavor  after  godliness,  and  a 
hatred  and  avoidance  of  sin.  For  the  Scripture  has 
said,  "As  the  body  without  the  spirit  is  dead,  so 
faith  without  works  is  dead  also."  While  we  can- 
not answer  God  for  one  of  a  thousand  of  our  trans- 
gressions, yet  he  will  reward  the  humblest  deed  of 
good  which  proceeds  from  love  to  Christ.  And 
when  the  beloved  apostle  spoke  of  the  blessedness 


THE    REWARDED    WOMAN.  249 

of  those  who  die  in  the  Lord,  he  adds,  "  They  rest 
from  their  labors,  and  their  works  do  follow  them." 
The  pious  deeds  which  they  had  wrought  on  earth 
were  not  forgotten  in  heaven ;  but  they  followed  as 
evidences  of  love  to  Christ,  as  the  result  of  holy 
principles,  and  are  thus  accepted  and  approved  by 
a  gracious  God.  Blessed  indeed  are  they  who 
steadily  endure,  amid  all  temptation ;  for  when 
they  are  tried,  they  shall  receive  the  crown  of  life, 
which  the  Lord  hath  promised  to  them  that  love 
him ;  and  thus  the  fruits  of  their  hands  and  hearts 
shall  be  given  to  them  through  all  eternity. 

"  0  !  in  our  sterner  manhood,  when  no  ray 
Of  earlier  sunshine  glimmers  on  our  way,  — 
When  girt  with  sin,  and  sorrow,  and  the  toil 
Of  cares  which  tear  the  bosom  that  they  soil,  — 
0  !  if  there  be  in  retrospection's  chain 
One  link  that  knits  us  with  young  dreams  again, 
One  thought  so  sweet  we  scarcely  dare  to  muse 
On  all  the  hoarded  raptures  it  reviews, 
"Which  seems  each  instant,  in  its  backward  range, 
The  heart  to  soften,  and  its  ties  to  change, 
And  every  spring,  untouched  for  years,  to  move, 

It  is THE  MEMORY  OF  A  MOTHER'S  LOVE  !  " 

17* 


GOULD   AND   LINCOLN, 

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Hugh   Miller's    Works. 

Bayne'8  Works.      "Walker's  Works.       Miall's  Works.      Bungener*s   Work.. 

Animal  of  Scientific  Discovery.      Knight's  Knowledge  is  Power. 

Krummacher's  Suffering  Saviour, 

Banvard's  American  Histories.     The  Aimwell  Stories. 

lewcOmb's  Works.     Tweedie's  Works.     Chambers's  Works.     Harris' Works. 

Kitto's  Cyclopaedia  of  Biblical  Literature. 

tf  rs.  Knight's  Life  of  Montgomery.        Kitto's  History  of  Palestin 

Wheewell's  Work.     Wayland's  Works.     Agassiz's  Works. 


*.r.'S/Hsnv.sz. 


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Haven's  Mental  Philosophy.     Buchanan's  Modern  Atheism. 

Cruden's  Condensed  Concordance.     Eadie's  Analytical  Concordance. 

The  Psalmist :  a  Collection    of  Hymns. 

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Memoir  of  Amos  Lawrence. 

Poetical  Works  of  Milton,  Cowper,  Scott.      Elegant  Miniature  Voluir.ee. 

Arvine's  Cyclopaedia  of  Anecdotes. 

Kipley's  Notes  on  Gospels,  Acts,  and  Bomans. 

Sprague's  European  Celebrities.     Marsh's  Camel  and  the  Hallig. 

Koget's  Thesaurus  of  English  Words. 

Hacketfs  Notes  on  Acts.     M*Whorter's  Yahveh  Christ. 

Globoid  and  Stannius's  Comparative  Anatomy.    Marco's  Geological  May,  V.  & 

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